State of Grace
by LegilimencyMe
Summary: Sequel to Fall Back Down - Hermione and Draco's life together as a family.
1. Two Years Later

_2 years later._

"Potter!" Draco said with mock malice as he entered Harry's personal Auror's office. He had been sent by Hermione to invite Potter and his family to Lyra's birthday.

In the past, Draco would have had difficulty entering the Ministry without causing a scene. Before Hermione, he had not been welcomed in the Wizarding world for obvious reasons. But recently, things had taken a change for the better. While people still kept their distance, they now smiled at him as he passed. Some would nod their heads in acknowledgement.

Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt had even offered him an office at the Ministry a year ago. Draco had graciously turned it down, however. He had grown accustom to working from home and he liked being able to spend his days with Scorpius and Lyra.

"Malfoy," Potter grinned. "What can I do for you? Trouble with your father again?"

Draco's relationship with his father was a precarious one, but had been bettering over the years. Lucius, however, still had his moments where he would piss Draco off. It had been a running joke between Draco, Potter and Weasley.

"No," Draco chuckled. "Hermione has sent me to invite you and your family to Lyra's second birthday. Between Hermione and my mother, they are practically throwing a ball in her honor. I honestly don't know how everyone is going to fit in my house."

Hermione had invited Blaise, his wife, who was six months pregnant, Harold and Jean, the Weasleys, and Pansy. Narcissa had also invited Andromeda and Lucius; which Draco extremely uneasy. It would be the first birthday Lucius would be attending and while their relationship was better, it still wasn't great.

"Thanks, but I think that Scorp already beat you to it. James and Teddy have been going on and on about going to Scorp's for days now," Harry said, shuffling papers around.

"Well, that makes everything easier," Draco nodded, before turning to leave. "See you there at noon then?"

"Bit of a hurry, are you?" Harry smiled.

"Promised Scorp that I would play some Quidditch with him this afternoon," Draco shrugged and slipped out the door.

::::

Scorpius zipped by Draco on his broom. Draco had gotten Scorpius a new broom for his birthday last year; a proper broom, not a children's one. Despite Hermione's adamant protests, Draco insisted that Scorpius was ready for an adult broom. Scorpius had loved it and proved to be a fantastic flyer.

Draco had beamed with pride and nearly every waking moment since then, Scorpius wanted to play Quidditch. In truth, it was exhausting, but Draco played with him anyways.

"Draco!" Hermione shouted from the ground, Lyra wailing in her arms. "Please help!"

"I'll be right back, buddy," Draco said to Scorpius, passing him the Quaffle.

Draco landed with a thud next to Hermione. Lyra reached out her chubby arms towards him and Hermione passed the toddle to Draco.

"She won't stop crying. She wants you – she _always_ wants you," Hermione sighed wearily.

"That's not true," Draco cooed as he made a face at Lyra. She had stopped crying almost as soon as she was in his arms, making it difficult for Draco to drive the point home. "She loves her mum."

"Not as much as she loves you," Hermione muttered. "Did you talk to Harry?"

"Yes," Draco said as Lyra slapped his cheek.

"Dada!" She squealed and Hermione threw her arms up in the air.

Unable to hold back a chuckle, Draco said, "Oh , come on, Hermione. It's just because she sees me less often."

"Sees you less! You work from home!" Hermione hissed and turned to go back into the house. "Dinner's nearly ready," she continued over her shoulder.

"It's just a faze, Hermione," Draco said as he chuckled at Hermione's dramatics. "Scorp," Draco shouted, "Sorry, buddy, we can't play any longer. It's time for dinner!"

Draco heard Scorpius roan from up in the air. Merely seconds later, Scorpius rocketed down and quickly landed beside his father.

"Oi," Draco said is a loud whisper, "Don't let Hermione see you going that fast. She'll go mental…again."

Scorpius laughed devilishly, "I know. Sometimes it's just fun to see her freak out."

Draco tried to give his son a stern look, but he was sure he was failing miserably. The truth was that he also sometimes liked to get a rise out of Hermione just for fun.

"I'll bet my wand that you'll be in Slytherin," Draco muttered under his breath. Lyra giggled and Draco shifted her in his arms. "Come on, buddy."

Scorpius struggled with his broom slightly as it towered over him. Draco reached out and took the broom from his son and carried it into the house.

"Thanks, dad," Scorpius said quietly. "I can't wait to be big like you. James is already bigger than me."

"James is a few months older than you," Draco tried to ration, but the truth was Scorpius was a little small for his age. "Not to worry, one day you'll grow. One summer – in my forth year, I think – I grew 5 inches over the summer."

"Cool," Scorpius smiled with bright eyes.

"Hurry up, boys," Hermione called from the kitchen.

Scorpius quickly ran into the kitchen, followed closely by Draco and Lyra.

"Go wash up, Scorp," Hermione smiled.

"Did you see me on my broom, mum?" Scorpius grinned. Draco saw Hermione's face tighten, but she quickly recovered and smiled warmly.

"I did," Hermione answered. "You were amazing. Better flyer than you father that's for sure."

Draco turned and walked into the dining room and fastened Lyra in her highchair. "Mummy's not nice, isn't she, Lyra?"

Lyra giggled and banged her hands on the highchair table.

"Don't tell her that, Draco," Hermione cried from behind him.

"She knows I'm joking, love," Draco laughed.

"She might not," Hermione said, moving into the dining room to place a salad bowl on the table.

While, Hermione had eventually agreed to let the house elves cook their meals, she refused to let them serve the food.

"_They are not going to serve us, Draco," Hermione said, drawing the line. "I'll agree to them cooking, but that's it. They will also be allowed to eat with us if they wish."_

As it turned out, none of the elves ever joined them, despite Hermione's efforts. They were happier to eat in their own quarters.

Draco helped Hermione place the rest of the food on the table and then took his seat.

Before taking her own seat, Hermione reached out and ran a hand through Draco's hair. It had grown out slightly, just slightly past his ears.

"You need to get your hair cut before Lyra's birthday," Hermione said and kissed his lips quickly.

"I know," Draco sighed, "I've been meaning too."

"I could cut it for you," Hermione offered, placing helping Scorpius fill his plate.

"No!" Draco said too fast and too loud, earning a sharp look from Hermione. "I mean – Harry told me about that time you cut his hair when you guys were on the run. I'll make an appointment tomorrow."

"I didn't cut anything off," Hermione said defensively, "He just thought I had done."

Scorpius giggled lightly and tucked into his food.

::::

"Draco will read to Scorpius tonight?" Hermione asked quietly as they picked up the toys left around the house. "I want to try to put Lyra to bed alone."

Draco bent to pick up another Quidditch player. "I don't know why you're letting this get to you. She loves us equally."

"Because I'm her mother, Draco. You wouldn't understand," Hermione gave Draco a weary look, her hair looking more frazzled than usual.

Placing a hand on each side of her face, Draco said, "She's soon to be two years old. They don't call it the 'terrible twos' for nothing. Scorp was a nightmare. Some days, I thought he truly hated me."

"I know, but what if I'm just a crap mum. What if that's why she doesn't like me as much?" Hermione nearly whined.

"You're a great mum. If you weren't, I'm sure Scorpius would have told you by now," Draco grinned. "That boy – I swear – he's getting more devious as the days go by."

Hermione finally smiled. "Like father like son, I suppose. I bet you were a right prat at his age."

"Oh, you have no idea," Draco laughed, "I don't know how my mother did it, honestly."

"You remembered that she's coming over to babysit tomorrow? We have that Ministry party to go to," Hermione reminded him.

Draco had been invited for the last two years to the Ministry's annual ball; since he was no longer their 'secret' worker any longer. The year pervious, Draco had refused to go; he told the minister that he was busy with the family; which wasn't entirely a lie. It had been only a couple days before Lyra's first birthday and he and Hermione had been busy organizing it.

This year, however, Hermione was not allowing him to back out of it. They had many arguments over the subject.

"_I'm not going, Hermione, and that's it," Draco had said forcibly._

"_We are, end of!" Hermione shouted back. "If you ever want to be accepted back into the Wizarding community then you have to make an effort."_

"_And what if I don't want to? I don't have to prove anything to anyone. And I don't want to kiss the asses of those who already hate me," Draco continued, stubbornly._

"_Because one day your son and daughter will be part of that world and they shouldn't have to suffer for you pigheadedness," Hermione shrieked._

_Draco sighed in defeat. She had a point, Hermione always had a point._

"_I don't want to go," Draco whined. "People are going to sneer and whisper. I won't enjoy myself."_

"_I don't give a damn," Hermione said and then continued more softly, "I'll be there right with you. And Harry, Ginny, Pansy and Ron will be there. No one will try anything with the 'Golden Trio' around."_

_Draco groaned, "I fucking hate that name."_

"_Once people see you with Harry and Ron, being mates, they will start to see you for who you are today," Hermione continued._

"_And what is that? A complete tosser?" Draco grumbled._

"_Oh, stop being such a child," Hermione laughed. "Once everyone realizes your friends with Harry and Ron, you won't even have to convince anyone. Also, I hear that Neville will be there with Hannah. I haven't seen him in a long time, it will be nice to catch up with everyone."_

"_Fine, whatever. Why do you always have to be right?" Draco hung his head in defeat._

"How could I forget," Draco groaned, rubbing the back of his neck to try to alive the stress.

"Well, with an attitude like that, I won't tell you my surprise," Hermione shrugged and turned away from him.

Draco's eyebrow's shot up and he looked wide-eyed at Hermione.

"What?" Draco asked excitedly, turning her back around to face him.

"Oh, I just arranged for your mother to spend the night with the kids and I rented a hotel room in London. I thought that we could use the night to ourselves," Hermione shrugged. "But if you still don't want to go…"

"You little minx," Draco said in awe. With Lyra and Scorpius, Hermione and Draco had troubled having anytime to themselves. "It seems that I'm looking forward to tomorrow night after all."


	2. Annual Ministry Party

Hermione meticulously straighten her hair. She would not let her hair be a problem tonight. To her horror, Lyra seemed to be developing Hermione's curly hair; however, Hermione was happy it was maintaining the Malfoy blond.

"Hermione," Draco called from the bedroom, "are you almost ready? We have to be out of here in twenty minutes."

"Yes," Hermione answered, "After this, I just have to put on my dress."

Draco came into the adjoining bathroom, knotting his tie. "Did you remind my mother about tonight? She's late."

"She's not late, Draco," Hermione said. "I told her to come ten minutes before we leave."

"Oh," Draco said bowing his head slightly.

"Are you feeling better about tonight?" Hermione asked, turning around to take a piece of lint off his jacket.

"Only slightly," Draco murmured.

"Everything is going to be fine," Hermione laughed.

"Whatever you say," Draco nodded and quickly kissed her cheek.

"Do you think the kids will be okay?" Hermione asked Draco, concerned. She now understood why Draco had wanted to keep Scorpius all to himself for so long. Leaving the children was the only reservation Hermione had about going to the party.

"They'll be fine. We've left them before. Merlin, you're worse than I was with Scorp," Draco chuckled.

"I am not," Hermione said, nearly stomping her foot. The truth was, however, that she was.

:::

The main floor of the Ministry looked relatively the same as during the day, the only difference was that fairy lights hung from the ceiling. The room was considerably packed; nearly everyone who worked at the Ministry was in attendance.

"Oh, Ms. Granger," boomed Kingsley coming up beside her and Draco. "It's so nice to see you again."

"Hello, Kingsley. It's lovely seeing you again, as well. Thank you so much for inviting us," Hermione smiled.

Kingsley reached out to shake Draco's hand, which earned them a few stares. For the most part, people had ignored Draco's presence; which Hermione was sure Draco was grateful for. Some had given him odd looks and whispered about him to the person closest to them. During those times, Hermione would tighten her grip on his hand or arm, pulling his attention to her.

"Draco," Kingsley greeted before turning back to Hermione. "I've offered Draco, here, an office in the Ministry many times now, but he keeps refusing. I would love to have him on board."

Hermione smiled, while Draco said, "I'm very grateful for the offers Minister, but I think I'm suited best for home. Maybe someday, when the children are older."

"Ah, yes. A family man – you should be very thankful for that, Hermione. I'm afraid that I was often too busy protecting Prime Ministers in my earlier years and my wife hated it," Kingsley laughed, his wrinkles becoming more pronounced. "Speaking of which, I keep expecting to see an engagement announcement in the Prophet," Kingsley continued, winking at Draco.

Hermione blushed, but noticed that Draco had stiffened beside her. She looked up to see him with a tight look on his face, his lips pressed into a firm line. The look shocked Hermione, to say the least. While they rarely ever discussed marriage, Hermione was sure that may one day they would.

Trying her best to smile at Kingsley, Hermione said, "Maybe in the future, but right now we are very happy are we are."

Draco's eyes shot to hers, like he had been in his own little world. Kingsley, seemingly unaware of the tension, laughed and clapped Draco's shoulder.

"Anyways," he said, "I always knew you would someday come around, Draco. That's why I hired you all those years ago. I knew that you were a good egg – a hard egg to crack, but a good one nevertheless. I'm glad to see that things are finally looking up for you."

"Thank you," Draco told the Minister just before he turned to leave.

Barely a second passed before Pansy appeared where Kingsley had been standing.

"That was painful to watch," she said, Ron coming up behind her. "I could nearly feel the tension over there," she said point to the other side of the room, where she must have been standing before.

"Yeah," Ron breathed, "I mean, Malfoy you turned pale white – well, paler than normal."

Draco huffed and strode away to the bar; which had been set up in the corner by the elevators.

"Merlin, Ron. You seriously don't know when to shut up, do you?" Pansy scolded, slapping lightly on the arm.

"I didn't mean anything by it," Ron muttered, looking over at Draco, who seemed to be ordering a drink. "He's just sensitive."

"It's not you, Ron," Hermione said, her brow pulling together. Suddenly, she regretted coming to the party. A sinking feeling filled her and she tried her best to fight back tears. "Kingsley basically asked us when we were planning on getting married and Draco got all weird."

Like Draco had before, Ron suddenly fell unusually quiet. He shuffled uncomfortably, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"You know something," Hermione said, narrowing her eyes in suspicion.

Ron shook his head, "I don't."

Pansy narrowed her eyes too and faced Ron. "You do!"

Ron continued to shake his head, as he backed away slightly. Pansy tried to grab on to his arm, but he shook her off.

"Ronald Weasley, you get back here and tell me what's going on," Hermione cried, almost stomping her foot.

"We're not seventeen anymore, you can't boss me around," Ron said, before turn and walking briskly over to where Draco was.

Hermione watched as Ron whispered fiercely at Draco. His face seemed to turn red with anger and Draco rubbed his forehead.

"I'm going to find out what's going on," Pansy said softly. "This is bloody ridiculous."

She touched Hermione's arm before walking over to Ron and Draco, leaving Hermione nearly in tears. So many emotions were running through her, she didn't know what to feel first. She felt hurt, confused, anxious and angry all at once.

Clearing her throat, Hermione raised her head up high, making sure no one would notice her distress; a trait she perfected from watching Draco.

"What's going on?" someone said from behind Hermione.

Turning around, Hermione saw Ginny and Harry; both of whom were looking over at Draco. Hermione had never been more relieved to see someone in her whole life.

"I don't know," Hermione replied, her shoulders slumping. "Kingsley mentioned marriage to Draco and everyone's gone _mental_."

Ginny pursed her lips and looked at Harry; who seemed to look just as upset as Ron had.

Hermione sighed heavily. Harry and Ron had always been protective of her, but she hoped that they wouldn't make a scene at the party.

Luckily, Pansy came back, but without Ron or Draco. "It's nothing to worry about, Hermione," she said quickly, clapping her hands together. Pansy ran a hand over her silky, wavy hair that must have taken her hours to do.

"Nothing to worry about," Hermione echoed. "So what? He doesn't want to marry me or something? Fine!"

Pansy gave Hermione a look, but Hermione could practically see the gears clicking into place in Pansy's head.

"I'm sorry, Hermione," Pansy said a little too cheerily. "He was married before and you know how well that turned out. He just doesn't think it necessary to do it again, you know? Why ruin a good thing?"

Hermione nodded somberly, letting the information sink in. It shouldn't have been a surprise and part of her agreed with Draco. They were good together and maybe marriage would ruin what they had. And she even understood why Draco wouldn't want to marry again. However, even though she understood, Hermione still felt extremely upset. Maybe she liked the idea of being married for a moment. Maybe in the back of her mind, she thought that someday they would get married.

Despite feeling absolutely awful, Hermione managed a smile. "I understand," she said, "I mean I did tell him I didn't want to marry him – what two years ago now?"

As she spoke, Hermione could feel the heat radiating off Ginny.

"Are you fucking joking?" Ginny nearly screamed. Her eyes were as wild as her hair. "I'm going to murder him!"


	3. Mistakes

"You told her what?" Draco shouted, which earned him several stares from the people around him.

An elderly witch who had ordered a sherry beside Draco, curled up her face at him and left before the barkeep had time to get her the drink.

Draco sneered right back and then turned back to Pansy. "You _told_ her I didn't want to marry her!" He hissed.

"Might have done," Pansy said nonchalantly, shrugging her boney shoulders. "What? Don't look at me like that. You said that you didn't want her thinking that you were planning on proposing anytime soon – well, this will have thrown her off your trail."

"Or you've _royally_ fucked things up," Draco growled in a low voice. He looked around to see if anyone was still staring and luckily most had the good sense to pretend like they weren't. "Do you even know Hermione at all? She must be furious," he muttered, dreading their night together.

"Oh, she is," Weasley chuckled; which earned him a slap from Pansy. "What? She _is_."

Draco groaned and slumped against the bar, while Ron and Pansy started to bicker.

"And whose fault is that?" Pansy scolded, "_You_ didn't have to freak out when Hermione mentioned marriage."

"It took me off guard," Ron countered. "I didn't know what to say."

"You didn't need to say _anything_," Pansy hissed.

"I _know_ which is why I was caught off guard!" Ron emphasized.

Potter came up to them, slightly out of breath. "I think that I've been able to get Ginny to call off the attack, but you've got two extremely pissed off women over there. It would be easier if I could just tell Ginny –"

"No," Draco interrupted forcefully. "Too many people know as is."

"Okay," Potter said reluctantly, "Anyways, I don't think Hermione has any clue about what's going on."

"No thanks to this tosser," Pansy pointed to Ron, who was turning red.

"Come off it, Pans," Draco mumbled, rubbing a hand down his face.

Pansy gave him a hurt look before saying, "One day you'll see what I did for the brilliance that it is and I will be expecting an apology and a thank you."

Draco watched as Pansy stomped off towards Hermione and Ginny, looking just as angry as they were.

Harry started to say something to Ron, but Draco interrupted them. "I'm going to the lavatory," he grumbled. Maybe he would be able to collect himself in there without all the people and noise.

He made his way through the crowd and down the hall to the bathrooms. The hallway was darker than the main lobby. It lacked the twinkle from the fairy lights. Away from all the people, Draco could nearly feel his head clearing.

Suddenly, hearing loud footsteps behind him, Draco quickly turned around to see three men behind him. When he faced them, the closest one grabbed him and shoved him against the wall; while the others pulled out their wands.

"Deatheater scum," the man laughed humorlessly and Draco's heart hammered in his chest.

He was sure that the men were just trying to scare him, prove a point, but Draco didn't want to push his luck. Having to deal with men like this before, he knew that it was best not to say anything.

"You think just because your friends with Potter and knocked up Granger, that you're welcomed back here," the man said, the smile fading from his face.

Draco struggled slightly at the mention of Hermione's name, but the man to his right wand's dug into his side.

"We remember," the man hissed, "Don't we, Brutus?"

The man to his left was able to nod just before he was shot backwards. Draco looked around to the opening of the hallway, just as shocked as his attackers were. The man to his right tried to scatter; backing up cautiously, but quickly was thrown back, joining his friend.

Entering the hallway, wand in hand, Hermione's eyes were nearly glowing with fury. The man holding on to Draco loosened his grip and started to back away.

"Yes, run. I dare you," Hermione bit out. She stormed over closer to them. With a flick of her wand, a silver otter exploded from the tip and fluttered out into the party. Draco could feel the man's hands shaking as several more footsteps made their way towards them.

While his attacker looked around anxiously, Draco took the moment to punch the man in the face. He fell back clutching his face, blood already pouring down his face.

Hermione moved so she was towering over him, her wand still pointed dangerously. "If you ever think about threatening him again," she threatened, "I'll make sure you never see sunlight again."

Ron and Harry ran up to them followed closely by Kingsley.

"Nice one, Hermione," Ron smirked, while Harry read the men their rights.

"Thank you," Hermione breathed.

"I'm so sorry, Draco," Kingsley said, slightly out of breath. "I'll personally make sure that they are relieved of their job immediately."

"That won't be necessary, Minister," Draco said. While Draco wanted the men fired, he knew that getting the men fire would not help his image.

"Are you sure?" Kingsley asked tentatively. "Honestly, I don't want these men to represent my ministry workers."

"I assure you," Draco continued, "I insist that you don't fire them. They probably had too much to drink."

Hermione, Ron and Harry gave him the same confused look, but he shrugged it off. Harry and Ron turned back to continued to arrest the three men and Draco stepped closer to Hermione.

"I'm getting really tired of having to save your arse," Hermione breathed, leaning again his crest.

Draco awkwardly wrapped his arms around her. He felt her relax and he knew that the arguing was over for the moment.

"Were you going to follow me into the loo?" Draco asked, his brow pulling together.

"I – I needed to talk to you and I thought I could get you alone," Hermione stammered, looking slightly embarrassed.

Draco smiled despite himself. "Well I'm glad you did. I don't want to say I told you so, but can we leave now?" Draco asked. "Tonight has been a nightmare."

"Yes!" Hermione nodded vigorously. "But I still want to know what the hell happened tonight. I understand if you don't want to marry me. I get it. By we should have discussed something like this at home and to have Pansy tell me – I swear, Draco –"

Draco cut her off with a deep kiss. "Please, shut up. We'll take about it at the hotel," he said as he pulled back to stroke her cheek. "And thank you for trying to follow me into the lavatory. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't."

"You know for a wizard, you sure do punch people a lot," Hermione joked, reaching down to look at his bruising hand.

"I find it more affective," Draco shrugged, wrapping an arm around Hermione's shoulders.

He led her down the hallway, anxious to get as far away as possible from the party. Draco was greeted by a fidgety Pansy.

"Where is he? Is he okay?" Pansy rattled off.

Draco stifled a chuckle. Pansy had always been one for the dramatics. He remembered all the times in Hogwarts when Pansy funded over him; like when he was attacked by the hippogriff.

"He's fine, Pans. Hermione had already hexed them before he even arrived," Draco replied, but his words remained ineffective.

"Are you leaving now?" Ginny asked and Hermione nodded.

Draco felt Hermione reach down and grip his hand. "I practically had to drag Draco here anyways, so I think we'll call it a night. But we'll be seeing you on Saturday for Lyra's birthday?"

"Like I could forget," Ginny laughed. "The boys have been going on and on about it. They're very excited to see Scorpius again."

"Oh, Ron," Pansy nearly squealed as he and Harry walked out of the hallway, attackers in tow. "You were so brave."

Draco saw Ron's ears turn red and he stood a little straighter. "Well, you know – all in a day's work."


	4. The Hotel Room

Hermione wanted nothing more than to get in the shower and wash off the night's stress. Though she hadn't said anything, Hermione was sad for Draco. She was upset that things, like what had happened at the party, were still happening to him. There was a time when he deserved to be treated that way, but that was a long time ago. He shouldn't have to pay forever for the mistakes he had made when he was a teenager. More than anything, she wished that everyone knew what a great father he was, how caring he was and how sweet he could be.

Furthermore, she was still upset about the whole marriage situation; but she wasn't going to let it ruin their night alone together. Seeing that Draco wasn't in any hurry to revisit the topic, Hermione decided to leave the argument till tomorrow. She couldn't help but wonder what had changed his mind though. When she was pregnant, he was eager to marry her. Maybe her constant rejections had put him off.

He had asked her a few more times after Lyra's was born. Hermione had always insisted that they were too busy to get married then. Thinking back, Hermione almost wished she had said yes. Another part of her, a very small part, was grateful she had said no. She wouldn't have wanted to marry Draco knowing that he didn't actually want to be married for a second time.

Sighing lightly to herself, Hermione said, "I'm going to take a shower." She turned away from Draco and continued, "Can you help me with the zipper?" Hermione moved her hair from off her back, making sure it wouldn't get caught.

While Draco unzipped her dress, Hermione could feel his breath on her neck, but she couldn't focus on his closeness. Something felt off, unusual. Her ears were ringing from the noise at the part and then she realized how quiet it was. Normally, it wouldn't have been quiet enough to hear her ears ring. They were usually surrounded by children or company. Hermione hadn't realized how use to the noise she was.

"It's so quiet," Hermione whispered. "Do you remember a time when it was so quiet?"

"I'm sure you it won't be quiet for long," Draco grinned smugly, which received him a light slap from Hermione.

Despite the night's events, Draco seemed unfazed. He continued on like nothing had happened. Not the marriage freak-out or the altercation. Hermione envied his ability to ignore certain things; but she supposed it came from years of training.

"Seriously, Draco," Hermione said, hold her dress close to her. "It's weird, right?"

Draco shrugged, "I spend a lot of my day in the study. So, I guess I'm use to quiet every now and again."

Also unlike Hermione, however, Draco seemed to be in no mood to talk. He quickly leaned down to kiss her neck. It spread warmth throughout the whole of Hermione's body, down to her toes and finger tips.

Hermione moaned and then she suddenly remembered.

"Oh," she gasped. "I didn't get to see Neville tonight. I was really looking forward to seeing him again. What a shame."

Draco quickly pulled back looking annoyed. His face flushed as he ran a hand through his hair and said, "I'm trying really hard not to be offended by you thinking of Longbottom at a moment like this."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I wasn't thinking like _that. _I only remembered promising to catch up with him tonight. Oh," Hermione continued excitedly, "maybe we could invite him and Hannah to Lyra's birthday. That would be nice, wouldn't it?"

"Oh, yes," Draco answered sarcastically, "Why don't you invite all the other Gryffindors and make a reunion out of it?"

"You don't have to get so upset," Hermione muttered. "I just thought it would be nice to see him again. Furthermore, he will probably be teaching our children when they attend Hogwarts, so it would be nice to catch up."

"I'll agree to anything as long as we can stop talking about Longbottom," Draco said, running a hand over his face. "It's severely killing the mood."

Looking sincerely at Draco, Hermione realized how uncomfortable the conversation was making him. Nearly every second that passed, Hermione could see him getting more agitated.

"It is, isn't it?" Hermione sighed, all heat she previously felt was extinguished. "I promised you a romantic evening. I'm sorry, Draco."

"Its fine, I suppose," Draco said dramatically, placing a hand on each side of Hermione's face. "As an apology, you can allow me to take a shower _with_ you."

Hermione blushed and offered him a shy smile. It seemed to be all the answer Draco needed because he pushed her hands away from her dress causing it to fall on the hotel room floor.

Draco's hands caught around her waist and he pulled her closer to him. He attacked her neck; which caused Hermione to moan loudly.

"Never mind, I don't think we're going to make it to the shower," Draco growled and loved to kiss her jaw, then her mouth. She wondered how his temperament could change so quickly, while she seemed to be playing catch up.

Hermione tried to groan in agreement, but her voice stuck in the throat. Reaching forward, Hermione and slid Draco's dress jacket off. She felt his muscles ripple as he moved to rip off his tie. Briefly, she wondered if Draco was finding time to work out. His arms seemed a little bigger and his muscles were more pronounced. She then remembered all the extra time he was spending playing Quidditch with Scorpius. Mentally, she thanked the sport for its affect on the human body.

"We don't do this enough," Draco muttered against her skin. "We _should_ do this more often."

"We've been a bit preoccupied," Hermione murmured and her fingers worked to unbutton Draco's shirt.

Suddenly, Draco pushed Hermione backwards, so she her back was pressed up against the wall. The force caused her to groan, but she was quickly silence by Draco's mouth on hers.

Hermione quickly wrapped her legs around Draco's waist and he lifted her up. He groaned and ground his hips into Hermione's.

Draco breathed, "Are you okay? Is this okay?"

He had been gentle and cautious with Hermione since Lyra's birth and Hermione had been extremely thankful for it. He had waited till she was ready to have sex again, which took a few months. He had been careful not to be too rough with her. But Hermione was done with the safe and gentle. She wanted him to make her feel sore in the morning. She wanted it to be like when they had first got together.

As if to answer, Hermione reached between them and unbuckled his belt. She leaned forward and kissed his neck roughly.

It took a moment for Draco to respond. He seemed slightly shocked by her sudden aggressiveness. Quickly, though, he caught up to her, nearly ripping over her knickers and throwing them to the side.

Unable to hold it back any longer, Draco pushed into her in one swift motion, which caused Hermione's breathe to hitch. She bit into the juncture between his neck and shoulder to keep from screaming out. Hermione barely registered that he had stilled in her, allowing her to adjust before continuing.

It was as though, Hermione couldn't bring Draco close enough to her. She gripped on to his shoulder and pulled him so they were chest to chest, and yet, it still wasn't enough. They were so tight, molded together like two puzzle pieces.

Draco caught her lips with his and kissed her so passionately, Hermione felt like she was literally melting away.

It didn't last very long, which didn't surprise either of them. It had been a long time since they last had the chance to be together.

As Draco steady Hermione when he placed her on the ground, he rasped, "How about that shower?"

Hermione, who was equally out of breath, answered, "What's the point?" And she pulled him over to the bed.

**Happy Holidays everyone! I hope you all are having a wonder holiday season! I'll try to get you another chapter after Christmas.**


	5. Morning Muffins

When Hermione woke, the sun was shining through the curtains. The weight of what happened at the party the night before seemed to hit her instantly. She truly wanted to better understand what Draco was feeling, what made him suddenly change his mind. Hermione had always thought that they would get married, at least for the children's sake.

Groaning loudly, Hermione pulled the duvet over her head. Marrying for the sake of the children would surely end in disaster. Lyra and Scorpius wouldn't be reason enough to marry. They would be only a fraction of the reason. Perhaps, Draco already knew this. After all, he had already been through it once. But they loved each other, properly loved; not the type of love she had felt for Ron. This was different, considerably more intense and all comsuming.

Reaching a hand out, Hermione realized that Draco was not in bed with her. Her brow pulled together in confusion only for a minute before she heard the hotel room door swing open. Tiptoeing, with a brown bag and two cups of tea, Draco quietly entered the room. He managed to place the bag and tea on the corner table before realizing Hermione was awake.

"I didn't wake you, did I? I was trying to be quiet," Draco groaned and he winced slightly, rubbing his forehead.

Hermione couldn't help the smile that came to her lips. "No, you didn't wake me. Thank you, though, for trying not to. It was very sweet."`

Draco nodded and picked back up the bag. "I bought some muffins from the bakery down the street. I thought you might be hungry."

As he spoke, only then did Hermione realize that she was actually starving. She loved it when he seemed to know what she was thinking. They had several moments like this; he knew her better than she knew herself and vise versa. The idea of marriage pulled at her again, causing a sinking feeling in her chest. She frowned, as Draco flopped down on the bed beside her.

"I got quite a few," he said, looking into the bag. "Do you want banana, blueberry or chocolate?"

"We should talk Draco," Hermione said softly.

He sighed and rolled up the bag. "I've been waiting for this. I was actually surprised that you hadn't brought it up last night."

"So," Hermione said; her voice suddenly very small. "It's true then? You don't want to get married. I thought that you did?"

Draco took a moment to run a hand through his hair, a sign that he was stressed. "I don't know, Hermione. I mean – I _wanted_ too. I would have married you in a second. But the more I think about it," Draco sighed, and fidgeted awkwardly, "the more that I think of it – why fix something that isn't broken. What we have is amazing. Why ruin it with marriage?"

Hermione felt her cheeks grow hot. "Because it's a way to show someone that you truly love them. That you want to spend the rest of your life with them! It's not about risking our relationship, it's about enhancing it!" Hermione rushed in a shriek. She took a deep breath trying to calm herself; and keep the tears at bay.

"Hermione," Draco said softly, "You know that I already feel all those things for you. Do you want me to write it in The Prophet? Because I'll do it. I'll declare my love for you to the whole Wizarding world. I'll tattoo 'I love Hermione Granger' on my arm if you like."

"Don't mock me," Hermione said dangerously, getting more and more annoyed and frustrated.

"I'm not mocking you," Draco said, throwing his hands up in defense. "I swear it. Besides, _you_ were the one who rejected my proposal, remember? Several times. I thought you didn't want to get married." Draco busied himself with the bag again, opening it back up and continued, "I guess after being told no, what, five time? I tried to see it from your perspective and the more I thought about the more I thought you were right. We don't need marriage, we're amazing like this. I love you; I love you more than anything."

Hermione stared at him analytically. For a moment she wondered if he were lying. But usually when he lied, he looked the person in the eye, dead on; something he wasn't doing just then.

Sighing, Hermione said, "I love you too, Draco." She reached over for her wand, not wanting to push the topic any longer. She didn't want to cause a fight, not with Lyra's birthday only a day away. So many people were coming over and she didn't want them to notice that there was trouble between her and Draco.

She cleared her throat before continuing, "I don't think you noticed, but last night when I casted it, my Patronus is changing."

"What do you mean?" Draco said, finally pulling out a blueberry muffin. He handed it to Hermione, with a puzzled look on his face.

"When you're in love, your Patronus changes its shape. Mine's an otter, but I think that it was starting to have scales like a dragon," Hermione sighed disappointedly. She quite liked her otter and was not anxious to lose it. Furthermore, she knew that Patronus' that took form of magical or extinct animals were very rare, so she had hoped that she would be able to keep the otter. "Your Patronus is suppose to change when you've meet your soul mate. It happened with Tonks and Lily Potter."

Draco nodded as he listened. "I've never been able to produce one. I haven't tried to a while, but I never could before. I don't think I had a happy enough memory when I was a teenager."

"Oh, you should try again," Hermione said a little more excitedly, sitting up straighter. "It's a very useful charm to know. You'll never know when you might need it."

Draco chuckled lightly and muttered, "My little know-it-all," affectionately. "Wait, does this mean that _I'm_ your soul mate?" He asked a little more loudly.

Hermione offered a half smile and said, "I guess it does."

Draco sat up straighter in the bed and rubbed his hands together. Reaching over to get his own wand, Draco said, "Okay, teach me how to conjure one. We'll see what mine is."

It wasn't what Hermione had expected him to say. She stared at him for a moment, while he raised his eyebrows in question, waiting for her to say something.

"Okay," she exclaimed, eager to teach him. "You have to think about a happy memory, make it your most happy memory. You have to let it consume you."

Hermione watched as Draco spun his wand around and around in his hands. He took several moments thinking hard about his memory.

Nodding, Draco said, "Okay, I think I got one."

Hermione smiled, "Go on then."

Leaning forward, Draco kissed her quickly on the mouth before pulling back with a goofy smile on his face.

He clearing his throat and said, "Expecto Patronum!"

There was a slight fizzle and a small, silvery cloud formed out of the tip of Draco's wand. Draco sagged in disappointment, which made Hermione giggle.

"Believe it or not, that was actually extremely impressive," Hermione said, reaching out to touch his hand. "It's a very difficult spell. It took me months to actually get a properly formed Patronus."

Draco flicked his wand again and a larger cloud of silver emerged from the tip. He sighed lightly and returned his wand to the end table. "I'll keep practicing, but for now let's eat. We have to return home soon and I am hungry."

"I wonder how they are," Hermione said softly, looking up at Draco. "I hope they didn't cause any trouble for your mother."

In response, Draco rolled his eyes and bit into his muffin. Hermione didn't understand how he could be so calm about leaving the children. Sure, he had been a parent for longer than she had, but she didn't think that she would never _not_ feel nervous about leaving the kids.

"They're fine, 'Mione," Draco muttered. "They're always fine."

::::

When Hermione and Draco landed in the fireplace at their home, they were instantly greeted by Scorpius, whose mouth was bleeding profusely. He was holding a towel to his mouth, the white cotton dotted with red splatters.

Hermione's heart sank and her pulse jumped. Managing to shoot Draco an 'I told you so' look before rushing over to Scorpius, Hermione dropped to her knees in front of him.

"What did you do!" she practically shrieked, reaching out to take Scorpius' face between her hands. "Are you alright?"

Scorpius pulled the towel away to revile a large gap in the front of his mouth where a tooth should have been.

Narcissa came around the corner, just as Hermione was about to shriek out again, with her wand in hand. "Not to worry, Hermione. Scorpius has only lost his first tooth. I was just about to heal it before you two showed up."

"Nana says that Muggles give money to kids who lose their teeth," Scorpius grinned despite the blood. "It didn't even hurt, Mum. Lyra threw her toy train at me and my tooth came out. It was cool!"

"Good thing you didn't swallow it," Draco laughed, but was quickly silence by a shape look from Hermione.

She turned back to Scorpius and patted his head lightly. Feeling only slightly calmer, Hermione pulled out her wand and quickly healed Scorpius and, with another flick, cleaned away the blood.

"That's what Nana said," Scorpius laughed, lisping slightly. "It's feels really weird. So what about the Tooth Wizard, do you think he'll come tonight even though I'm not a muggle?"

Hermione smiled, "I think you mean the Tooth Fairy and I'm sure they will."

Scorpius smiled widely, "I'm going to tell Lyra that a fairy is coming tonight."

Before anyone could stop him, Scorpius was already running down the hall to his sister's room.

"He's going to frighten her," Draco laughed, "And what is a Tooth Fairy?"

"It's just something Muggles do. They leave their children money for their teeth once they've fallen out," Hermione said getting up.

"I was wondering when he was going to start losing his teeth. Most children have already started. James started a year ago," Draco said.

Hermione's brow furrowed. She hadn't even thought about Scorpius loosing teeth. It seemed odd for Draco to know something that she hadn't.

"The children were behaved? They didn't cause you too much trouble, mother?" Draco asked, pulling Hermione from her thoughts.

"Oh, they are always wonderful," Narcissa said. "I did have a hard time putting Lyra to bed, though. She was fussy."

"She always is," Hermione frowned, "She'll only go to bed for Draco. Such a daddy's girl."

Hermione hadn't meant it as a complement, but Draco seemed to bust with pride nevertheless.

"Well, I'll see you again tomorrow for Lyra's birthday," Narcissa said moving towards the fireplace. "I promised Lucius that we would have a quiet evening together."

Draco groaned dramatically and said, "Please mother. I really did not need to hear that!" Hermione giggled at Draco's discomfort.

"I didn't mean that, Draco, honestly!" Narcissa gasped and blushed deeply. "I simply meant that we – "

"Okay," Draco interrupted, "I get it. Thank you for watching the kids," he continued as he ushered his mother into the fireplace. "We'll see you tomorrow."

One Narcissa had left, Hermione reached out and smacked Draco across the arm.

"Ow! What was that for?" Draco cried softly, rubbing his arm.

"Oh, I don't know _'They're fine, Hermione, They're always fine!'"_ Hermione mocked, "Next time I am concerned about the children's wellbeing, how about you don't patronize me!"

"He lost to tooth. It's not like he fell from his broom," Draco said, but as he did he regret seemed to instantly cross his face.

"Don't you joke about that!" Hermione cried a little louder. "You know how much that scares me!"

"I know," Draco said reaching out to take her hand, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make light of it."

"Fine," Hermione huffed, "Don't do it again. And I want you to admit I was right for being worried," she crossed her arms seriously.

Hermione could see the smile that Draco was trying to hold back as he said, "Okay, you were right. The children were in terrible danger and we should have came home sooner."

"Oh, shut up," Hermione moaned. "I'm going to check on Lyra."

Just then Scorpius came back into the room with a sheepish look on his face. "I told Lyra about the fairy and now she's crying."

This time Draco couldn't hold back laughing as he said, "I told you he would scare her with that."


	6. Cake Batter

**I'm so sorry it's been so long again! Honestly, I don't know where the time goes. I want to be able to promise to get back on some sort of schedule, but I don't want to make promises that I probably won't be able to keep. I'm graduating university this semester, plus I'm applying to grad school, so these next few months might be a bit hectic for me and I'm not sure when I'll be able to update. But I promise I will update! Thank you so much to those who wait patiently for new chapters. And another big thank you to those who hassle me to update! It really gives me the kick in the ass needed to get stuff done. **

"Calm down, dear. You're stressing too much," Draco said coming up from behind Hermione. He gently placed his hands on her hips, but she shrugged him off and continued to aggressively beat the cake mix.

"I can't calm down, Draco!" Hermione snapped. "Two dozen people will be here this afternoon and I still have so much to do!"

"You can do this all by magic, love," Draco said and Hermione shot him a sharp look.

"I want to do this," she replied. She wanted to continue to do some things the muggle way. Draco, having grown up knowing only magic, didn't understand how she felt. It seemed more personal and making the children's birthday cakes was one of those things. It was like when Harry dug Dobby's grave. Doing it by hand meant something more. However, if the cake weren't to turn out, a little magic wouldn't be a bad thing.

Sighing lightly, Hermione continued, "But you could help, you know. Wash up Lyra and Scorpius – get them dressed and ready."

"I've already done it," Draco shrugged. Hermione felt Draco tense behind her, like he'd forgot something. After a moment, Draco continued, "Actually, I do have something I need to do. Do you mind if I step out for awhile?"

Hermione swung around to face Draco, but he was already backing out the kitchen door.

"Now!" She cried, completely exasperated, "You're going to leave me _now_?"

"I'll only be gone for a moment. You won't even notice my absence," he said holding his hands up in surrender.

Shaking her head from the shock of what Draco just told her, Hermione shrieked, "You can't leave me now! Did you even hear what I said-" But Draco had already left, running out the door.

Hermione gaped at the area Draco had, only momentarily ago, occupied. She was completely speechless and stunned.

"I'll get your parent's while I'm out!" She heard Draco call from the sitting room.

Hermione's stomach felt like it was in knots. She was completely stress over the birthday party and no top of that, she now felt guilty. Draco had been acting odd all morning. Drumming his hands against the table during breakfast or not moving when Lyra threw her banana at him. Hermione assumed that he was anxious about his father coming to the party. She understood and she wished she had time to talk to him about his anxiousness, reassure him in some way. But she had been busy all morning and simply didn't have the time to ask him, which she deeply regretted.

Groaning aloud, Hermione took her frustration out on the cake batter.

"Mum, you okay?" Scorpius asked from behind Hermione, nearly making her jump and spill the cake batter. She had been focused on Draco that she hadn't heard Scorpius come into the kitchen.

Behind Scorpius, Lyra waddled in after him. Scorpius, being the ever protective big brother, took her hand, making sure she didn't stubble about and hurt herself.

Hermione could not have been prouder of Scorpius and how he interacted with Lyra. He took his duties as a big brother seriously. In return, Lyra practically worshipped her big brother. Of course in the beginning, Scorpius had his days when he was jealous of the amount of attention Lyra received, but now they were almost inseparable.

"I'm fine, Scorp," Hermione sighed. "Your father just drives me crazy sometimes."

Scorpius laughed his devilish laugh and said, "He said he likes to get you annoyed sometimes. We think it's funny!"

Hermione whipped around and gave Scorpius a coy look. "We?" She asked.

For a moment, Scorpius stared back at Hermione before smiling innocently. "We? Did I say _we_? I meant _he_. He thinks it's funny. He says he likes it when your hair gets all wild and your voice gets really high."

"You cheeky little Malfoy!" Hermione said in an amused mutter. She should be angry that her son and boyfriend where purposely getting her angry for their amusement. "That's awfully specific, you know?"

"Yeah, well you know, dad talks a lot," Scorpius shrugged.

Hermione laughed loudly, which seemed to make Lyra laugh as well. "How's your tooth? Or _lack_ thereof?" Hermione asked placing the bowl on the counter and kneeling down so she was level with the blond boy.

"All good!" Scorpius grinned, showing off the space between in front teeth. "The Teeth Wizard came! Look," he said excitedly, pulling the galleon out of his pocket. Draco had insisted in giving the galleon to Scorpius, even though he didn't completely understand the tradition.

"_So, I'm suppose to take the tooth and just place this under his pillow?" Draco has asked lasting, holding the coin out in front of him. "What's the point of it?"_

"_I don't know, Draco. I think that it's to help children to be less scared about losing teeth. It helps make it exciting," Hermione explained._

"_Okay," Draco nodded, his brow slightly furrowed. "Okay, once I have the tooth? What do I do with it then?"_

"_Most parents keep them," Hermione shrugged._

_Draco's face contorted in disgust. "That's unsanitary! Completely foul."_

"_Just do it, Draco," Hermione said, trying not to giggle. "Oh! And be sure not to wake him. He's expecting a fairy, not – well, you."_

"It's the Tooth Fairy," Hermione smiled. "And aren't you a lucky boy?"

"I can't wait to show nana!" He said, jumping slightly.

"Well, she should be here in a couple of hours," Hermione replied, turning back to her cake. "Be sure not to lose it before then."

"I won't," Scorpius said, placing the coin back into his pocket. "Come on, Lyra. Let's go play with the Quidditch figurines."

::::

Draco had been true to his word, he had returned with her parents; who were more than pleased to see their grandchildren. Hermione even saw her dad discreetly pass Scorpius a pound for his lost tooth. Scorpius had beamed back and placed the muggle coin along with the Wizarding one, in his pocket.

And the party was in full swing. Mr. Weasley was chatting with Hermione's mother in the corner, children were running about, and Pansy was laughing with Hannah and Neville.

Draco, however, was the only one no enjoying himself. He stood tensely in the corner, barely moving. He would eye his father every one and then, clearly making sure that his father was still behaving. Lucius was, he was behaving. He had even talked to Hermione's father for a long moment. What about, Hermione hadn't the slightest idea.

"Congratulations, my dear," Narcissa beamed, coming up beside Hermione. "I can't tell you how excited I am."

Hermione's brow pulled together for a moment. "Congratulations? What for?"

Narcissa's smile faltered for a moment, but she recovered quickly. So quickly that Hermione barely had time to notice the smile slip from her pretty mouth and the look of regret flash through her eyes.

"For the party of course," Narcissa said, a little too brightly. "And I'm _excited_ about finally allowing Lucius to come out and mingle. Isn't it wonderful? Oh, look I must speak with Molly," Narcissa said quickly before rushing off to Mrs. Weasley.

Hermione offered her a strange look as she walked away. Before even having time to contemplate what had just happened, Draco came over to her.

"What did my mother say?" He asked quietly. He seemed to be searching her face for clues and Hermione sighed lightly.

"She wanted to congratulate me on the party?" Hermione said, unsure of her answer. "That's strange, isn't it?"

"Not at all," Draco replied. "It's customary for the host of a party to be congratulated on its success, is it not?"

"I suppose," Hermione breathed, unconvinced. "Could you try to look like you're having fun, Draco? You look like you're about to explode from tension."

"What are you talking about?" He laughed.

Hermione offered him a small smile, "I know you're stressed about having your father here, you have been all morning, but could you relax just slightly? He's doing fine, I even saw him laugh at one of Arthur's jokes. Well - it was sort of a laugh. I think he was trying not to, to be honest."

"I'm not stressed about my father," Draco muttered.

"Then why are you so tense?" Hermione asked quietly. She placed her hand on his arm, trying to offer him some sense of comfort, but he shrugged her off.

"You're right," he said quickly, "it is my father."

Draco turned and walked away from Hermione for the second time, leaving Hermione there gaping once again.

"Has everyone gone mad?" Hermione muttered to herself.

"I like to think that I'm still sane," Ron said coming up behind her. He was snacking on crackers, which were piled up in his hand. "Well, at least saner than my parents. Did you hear what dad told Lucius before? It was bloody embarrassing. '_We love our Ron and all, but Pansy, she's brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I'm not sure how he managed to pulled that one.'_" After finishing imitating his father's voice, Ron huffed loudly. "My own father turned against me."

Hermione giggled softly. Leave it up to Mr. Weasley to say what everyone was thinking.

"No," Hermione said after a moment, "it's just that Draco has been acting very strange all morning. Fidgety, like he's panicked."

Ron smiled smugly before saying, "Everythings fine. I'm sure it is. At least no one is laughing at your expense. Count yourself lucky."


	7. Crashing

Draco had to admit, that even though Hermione was extreme frazzled that morning, she managed to throw together an amazing birthday for their daughter. Paper unicorns danced along the walls, balloons hung from nearly everywhere and glitter fell from the ceiling, disappearing just before they reached the guests' heads. The perfect birthday for a little girl.

Lyra had crawled up on to Draco's knee only moment's ago. She was sticky from the cake that she smeared practically everywhere. Hermione had tried her best to wash her off, but Lyra started fidgeting to escape.

Draco pulled out his wand to cast a quickly cleaning spell on to his daughter and on to his shirt, which she had smudged pink icing all over. He was grateful, however, for his daughter's presence. With her on his knee, it stopped twitching with nerves and provided him with something to distract himself with.

"If you had told me when we were in Hogwarts that Draco Malfoy would, in the future, have to cast a cleaning spell to clean up the pink icing from his shirt, that he _willing_ let his daughter put there," Longbottom said, taking the seat next to Draco, "I would have had them committed to St. Mungo's."

Draco laughed, despite himself. "I probably would have too," he grinned, affectionately patting his daughter's curls. "How are things, Longbottom?"

"Very well," he said. "I've got a job at Hogwarts, I'm now a professor of Herbology. Which I must say, much better than being an Auror."

"I heard," Draco nodded, "That's great. So you'll be teaching Teddy this coming September?"

"Yes," Neville nodded, "Harry's already warned me about him. Ginny says that he's inherited Harry's rebelliousness."

"I can vouch for that," Draco chuckled along with Longbottom, "But he's a great kid, nevertheless."

Longbottom looked stunned for a moment, before shaking his head. "Ron said that it was shocking," Neville smiled, "How much you've changed that is."

Draco tightened his jaw and clutched Lyra closer. He wondered how long people would continue to question him. Would it be for the rest of his life? Draco knew that he shouldn't be bothered by it, but it did. Every time commented on how he's changed only proved to him that most people still thought him to be the spoilt, awful child he once was.

"So, I've been told," Draco muttered and Lyra playfully smacked her hand to his cheek.

"Daddy," Lyra smiled, smacking his cheek again. "Daddy," she squealed.

"Yes, Lyra," Draco smiled, trying to ignore Longbottom's presence; who he knew was staring at him, opened mouthed.

"She's going to be a heart-breaker, Malfoy," Longbottom chuckled finally. "And she's got you wrapped around her figure."

"That's for sure," Harry said coming up behind them. "He's already worried about Albus stealing her away from him," Harry continued, taking a seat next to Longbottom.

"Shut it, Potter," Draco muttered, "They already are inseparable when they are in the same room together."

Potter seemed to enjoy Draco's discomfort about the subject and laughed loudly. Taking a moment to calming himself, he managed to ask, "So, when's it going to happen?"

Shooting a dangerous look at Harry, Draco practically fell from his chair. "Keep your voice down!" He hissed.

"She's in the kitchen, Draco," Harry said with a wave of his hand. "With Ginny, who's probably talking her ear off."

"Still," Draco whispered dangerously, "Shut your bloody mouth about it. I think that my mother may have already tipped her off_. 'Congratulating her on the party'_ – that daft old woman."

"Wow, mate, you're seriously stressed," Harry said, wide-eyed. "I don't know why you didn't just do it at the hotel, like you originally planned."

"Because," Draco answered in a low voice, "she was already upset about the marriage issue and what happened at the Ministry. I didn't think it was the right time."

"Whoa," Longbottom said, bewildered, "Am I assuming correct and you are actually going to propose to Hermione."

Running a hand down his face, Draco groaned loudly. "Gryffindors," he muttered, "haven't the slightest idea what shut it means, do they?"

"That's mental," Longbottom said brightly. "Great, but mental. Congratulations!"

"It's a bit soon for Congratulations. She hasn't said yes, now has she?" Draco twitched nervously.

Draco thought back to how nervous he had been at the Ministry ball when he had planned on proposing that night. Kingsley mentioning marriage threw him off so badly, he hadn't known how to react. Then there was Hermione, who was so terribly upset about the whole situation. He knew that she had been considerably more upset than she had lead on, but he wasn't sure how to comfort her without letting her getting wind of his intentions. It had practically killed him to lie to her and tell her that he didn't want to marry her. It killed him even more when her face fell and reluctantly accepted his rejection.

"Come on, mate," Harry sighed, "You can't possibly think she'll say no! Not after what you saw at the Ministry Ball."

"I dunno," Draco grumbled. "I don't want to talk about it anymore. I'm already bloody nervous as is and this conversation isn't helping."

He had gotten the ring that morning from the Manor, where he had been hiding it. Ever since then, it had been weighing heavily in his pocket, constantly distracting him. He had to stop himself from reaching to it constantly.

Thankfully, Pansy came in the room, which ended the conversation.

"Neville," she smiled, "Your wife is absolutely hilarious."

Longbottom seemed to burst with pride. "I know it."

"We should hang out more often," Pansy continued. "Anyways, Draco, I don't want to pressure you, but people are starting to talk about leaving. I'm not sure you can wait any longer."

Draco bounced Lyra on his knee unconsciously. Never had he been this nervous in his life. He wanted nothing more than to be his teenage self and run away and cower.

"I've managed to get everyone in the sitting room," Pansy said, reaching out to take Lyra from Draco. "Take your time. I think I can manage the keep them all there for a while longer."

Harry reached out and clapped Draco's shoulder. "Good luck," he and Neville smiled before they exited the room, leaving Draco alone with his nerves.

His palms were sweating like mad and he tried to wipe them down on his trousers. What if she said no again? It would absolutely humiliate him, especially in front of all their close friends and family.

On the other hand, he was so ready for this, for Hermione to become his wife. He wanted nothing more.

Pushing all his nerves aside, Draco focused on the excitement that coursed through him. He loved her more than he ever thought he could love another person, other than Scorpius and Lyra that is. Before and after Astoria, he had accepted the fact that love would never be a part of his life. Scorpius, he had thought, would have been enough. But he had been wrong, so completely wrong. Ever since he found his mother and son in a Hermione's bookshop, he knew he had been wrong. And now he needed Hermione just as much as he needed Scorpius or Lyra.

Holding on to that thought gave him enough strength to leave the room and head towards the sitting room.

The hallway never seemed so long. He could hear the voices echoing through the house, but they all seemed to blur together. When he entered the room, however, all the voices seemed to stop completely.

Draco spotted Hermione just as she bent over to rub Scorpius' cheek, removing the chocolate cake smear. Everyone in the room seemed to vanish as he focused solely on Hermione. As though on cue, Scorpius grinned and moved away. He found James and stood beside his friend.

His mind suddenly went blank. Everything he had planned to say was forgotten and panic started to creep up again.

Hermione straightened and offered him a small smile. The smile, however, was short lived as Draco saw her face twitch nervously and she glanced around at their guests.

"Uh," Draco cleared his throat, trying to sting some words together in a coherent sentence. "Um," he mentally groaned at his stammering. He couldn't do it. Not now in front of everyone.

"What is everyone looking at?" Draco laughed nervously. "Um, how about we open the presents now?"

Out of the corner of his eye he saw his mother and Pansy offer him sympathetic looks. Harry came up behind him and clapped his shoulder.

"Sounds perfect," Harry smiled and then tried to redirect the attention elsewhere.

::::

"You managed to throw an amazing party, Hermione," Draco said, sitting down at the edge of their bed.

Scorpius had only just passed out, completely knackered from the day. Lyra had long ago fallen asleep, even before everyone had left. For the remainder of the party, everyone had offered him sad, but understanding looks, except Hermione. If she had any inclination of what had just happened, she didn't let on. Draco was gald that she remained unaware of his cowardice. Nevertheless, he had to escape into the kitchen so many times to avoid the looks.

"Thank you," Hermione smiled, stripping off her sweater. "Are you okay? You were acting strange today? I wanted to talk to you so badly, but I was so busy with everyone."

Draco shook his head at her and offered her a small smile. That was Hermione, his Hermione. So compassionate and so perfect. She had been so busy, yet she had noticed something was wrong. He could lie to her or hide his feelings from her. And he found that he didn't want to.

A feeling, something he hadn't felt that afternoon, rose up in him. A feeling of need and excitement. And suddenly he was overcome with delirious happiness. He needed her to be his wife and he needed her to know that he loved her that much.

Draco ran a hand over his face before saying, "Hermione. I don't know what to say."

He took a few strides forward and took her hand in his. Hermione tighten her grip as though to stop his shaking hands. Her touch seemed to be an anchor, pulling his mind back to her.

"Are you alright, Draco?" Hermione asked, her brow pulled together in concern and confusion.

"I'm perfect. Absolutely perfect," Draco continued more confidently. "Where do I even begin? You are amazing and fucking brilliant. You've accepted Scorpius as one of your own and you have given me Lyra. I could never thank you enough. And I never thought that I could have ever been his happy. _Never_. You're constantly saving my ass," Draco chuckled lightly.

"Where is this coming from?" Hermione laughed with him, but he could tell that is was more of a nervous laughter. "Are you drunk?"

"And you talk so _damn_ much," Draco continued, rolling his eyes. "You have to know everything, even things that no one actually cares about. I can never keep up with your emotions. You make me _mental_ and so, so happy. You have been my savior, in more ways than one. You wanted the ultimate declaration of our love, well here it is," Draco breathed before dropping down on one knee and pulling the ring from his pocket. "Marry me?"

Time seemed to stop, as though the earth stopped spinning. And then it seemed to crash as tears started to pool in Hermione's eyes and she shook her head no.


	8. A Dressing Robe

"Bloody hell, Draco," Hermione hissed, taking several steps away from him.

He continued to kneel on the floor, his hand still reaching out with the ring. The look of shock was still clearly etched in his face. How could he ask her like this? It was suppose to be romantic.

"You're asking me _now_? Now when I have no shirt on? I'm practically naked, Draco!" She reached out for her dressing gown, but managed to get Draco's instead. Throwing on the large green robe anyways, she quickly tied the sash. "I will _not_ be proposed to while naked! Ask me again," she said when she reached him.

"Will you marry me?" Draco repeated, completely unsure of what was happening . His forehead knitted together and his cheeks were slightly flushed.

Hermione let the warmth of her happiness spread through her like wild fire. Her shaking hands found her face and she couldn't prevent the smile from booming through. It was thought she could never _not_ smile again. There would forever be this ridiculous smile on her face.

"Yes," she finally managed to breath. "Yes, oh Merlin! Yes."

After a moment, Draco slowly grinned. "Did you just _dictate_ how your proposal would go? Honestly, Hermione."

"Oh, shut up," Hermione blushed and Draco reached out to take her hand; his own face was consumed by the same goofy smile.

As he slipped the ring on, Hermione was finally able to see it properly. It was beautiful and delicate and absolutely perfect.

"Mother wanted you to have one of the Malfoy rings, but I couldn't bring myself to give you a ring from one of my bigoted ancestors," Draco started to ramble, "I thought that we could start a new heirloom, one that Scorpius could give his wife and so on. One that was founded on something better – I don't know."

"I love it," Hermione said, taking his face in her hands. "And I love you."

Draco breathed out loudly and the stress seemed to drain from him. He rose up and Hermione pulled him in for a heated kiss.

"I can't believe you said no again," Draco said, pulling back, shaking his head.

"I can't believe you asked me while I didn't have a shirt on. People will ask how you proposed. _Lyra_ will want to know how you proposed. Do you want to tell her that you proposed her mother while she was naked," Hermione giggled.

"You were hardly naked," Draco muttered, kissing her once more.

Hermione pulled away, considerably lightheaded. "I just have to ask you one thing. Is isn't – is this because of what happened at the Ministry ball?"

Draco shook his head. "I was actually planning to propose that night, then everything went wrong. And then I was going to do it today at the party, but I just couldn't do it in front of everyone. It didn't seem intimate enough."

"Was shirtless intimate enough for you?" Hermione joked.

"I don't know. It was like I couldn't hold it back any longer. Like it _needed_ to be done then," Draco blush deepened. "You're never going to let me live this down, are you?"

"Never," Hermione whispered, pulling Draco even closer.

::::

Hermione caught herself smiling all morning. She and Draco had hardly slept a wink last night even though both of them where tired from the birthday party. They spent the rest of the night giddy, like hormone induced teenagers.

Scorpius had even caught them snogging that morning in the kitchen. He had been wondering where his breakfast was. He did not, however, curl up his nose and make gagging noises like he usually did. Instead, his face broke out into a smile.

"Did you ask her then, dad?" Scorpius nearly yelled. Draco had barely time to nod before Scorpius was dumping up and down with excitement.

He and Draco were currently in the garden, playing a lazy game of Quidditch, while Hermione was in the process of trying to write her new book. Lyra was in the study with her, playing quietly on the floor with all her new toys.

In all honesty, Hermione was far too distracted to actually work. She knew she should try nevertheless. Since Lyra had been born, Hermione had reduced her workload significantly. She had yet to re-open her bookshop, which she would have missed greatly had it not been for Lyra or Scorpius, who kept her occupied.

Hermione heard a shuffle come from the sitting room, which made her jump. The sound was followed by a loud, "Hello?"

Lyra smiled and looked over at Hermione. "Pans!" the infant squealed in delight.

"Yes, Lyra. Pansy is here," Hermione said, getting up from her desk. She hadn't been expecting Pansy to come over, but she was happy she was here nonetheless.

"I'm in the study," Hermione shouted back at Pansy; who was already turning to come in the doorway.

"How's my precious little god-daughter?" Pansy cooed as she picked up Lyra, who eagerly reached out. "I just came by to see if you need some help cleaning. I know how you don't like to use the house elves, so I figured you would be doing it all yourself."

"That's very sweet of you," Hermione replied, gratefully. "As you could tell from the sitting room, I haven't even begun. I'll just gather up these papers and we can start."

As Hermione started to put the cap on her ink and put away her quill, she heard Pansy take a sharp breath. Hermione had thought that Lyra had pulled Pansy's hair, which was becoming a bad habit of hers, until Pansy's hand shot out and grabbed Hermione's own hand.

"He did it!" Pansy cried out. "He finally did it!"

Hermione looked down at her engagement ring and let herself get excited all again.

"I was just going to tell –" Hermione started, but she was cut off by Pansy's excited squeal.

"Oh Merlin, this is so exciting. I'm so happy for you two!" Pansy rattled on, pulling Hermione's hand closer to look at the ring.

"He told you? How long have you known about it?" Hermione asked.

"Oh, for quite a long time now," Pansy smiled. "He told me he was planning on proposing again when you rejected his last proposal. I suspect he would have never given up. He would have asked you until you eventually said yes."

Hermione's brow pulled together. "But he last asked me nearly a year ago."

Pansy nodded. "Yes, he said that he would take his time. Make sure it was the right moment, with the right ring. Deep down, he's a romantic. He just won't admit it."

"Romantic?" Hermione laughed sarcastically. "He proposed to me while I was undressing."

"He did not!" Pansy laughed loudly. "Typical Draco."

"I made he ask me again when I was dressed," Hermione giggled lightly.

"And typical Hermione," Pansy said as she tickled Lyra's belly. "I better be a bridesmaid," she continued.

"Of course," Hermione rolled her eyes. "I don't have very many friends who are girls. It's basically just you and Ginny."

"Weren't you friends with Looney Lovegood?" Pansy asked, her eyebrows pulling together.

"Luna?" Hermione corrected.

"Yeah, sorry. I never actually knew her real name," Pansy said.

"Luna and I were friends, but we were never close. Harry and Ron liked her more than I did – that's not to say I didn't like her," Hermione shrugged. "I found it difficult to put up with her nonsense, sometimes. And unlike Harry and Ron, I couldn't just ignore it. Anyways, we're still friends just not that close."

Pansy and Hermione made their way to the sitting room; Lyra still in Pansy arms. Before reaching the sitting room, however, Hermione spotted Draco rounding the corner with a glass of water in his hand.

"Hey, Pans," Draco said. "What brings you here?"

"Just thought I'd help your _fiancée_ clean the house," Pansy answered, wagging her eyebrows at the same time.

Hermione's heart seemed to somersault at the mention of being someone's fiancée. It was exciting and prideful. She felt her cheeks flush as she snuck a peek at Draco, who was grinning smugly and rubbing his jaw.

"So you told her then?" Draco chuckled softly at Hermione.

"She didn't need too," Pansy interrupted before Hermione could say anything. "That ring was like a beacon, staring me right in the face. Not to mention the fact that Hermione's practically glowing!"

"Do we have time to tell our friends or will you get to them before we do?" Draco joked, but Hermione knew that he had some truth to it.

Pansy had a way of getting extremely excited and, at no fault of her own, accidently blabbing things she shouldn't. In all honestly, Hermione was impressed that she had managed to keep the proposal a secret for a year.

"After all, you told Weasley about my intentions to propose again; who went and told Potter," Draco continued.

"I won't tell anyone until you have," Pansy shook her head mockingly. "Well, I'll probably tell Ron when I get home, but I'll have him promise not to tell anyone else."

"How many people actually knew about the proposal?" Hermione asked.

"Pretty much everyone," Pansy replied. "Except you, of course."

Hermione turned to look at Draco, who shrugged. "Pansy told most. But I asked your parent permission, of course, and I asked my mother for advice, who told my father. He's surprisingly very supporting of us getting married," Draco said, his brow pulling together slightly. "But I suspect that it has more to do with Lyra and Scorpius having unwed parents than it does anything else."

"Oh," Hermione said. The thought of Draco asking her parents for permission lingered on.

She knew that she shouldn't be surprised that he asked. Draco was extremely traditional and liked to respect outdated gentlemanly gestures. It did surprise her how thoughtful and considerate she found the act to be. He had been serious enough to ask her parent's permission to marry her. It made her love him even more, if that was even possible.

Hermione moved closer to Draco and Pansy was momentarily forgotten. As she reached up and placed a gentle kiss on his lips, Hermione saw a faint blush forming on his cheeks. Hermione pulled back, only intending it to be a quick 'thank you' kiss, but Draco dragged her back in.

He kissed her passionately for only a few moments longer and then pulled away. Before either Hermione or Draco could say anything more, Pansy interrupted.

"I came here to clean, not to watch you two snog," she said in mock horror. Dramatically, she pulled Lyra's head to her chest. "There are children present, for Merlin's sakes."


	9. Legal Documents

Hermione and Pansy had managed to get the house somewhat livable before Pansy had to leave; even if Hermione had done most of the cleaning. Pansy had been far too excited coordinating the wedding. She had managed to suggest a colour scheme, what food should be served and where people should be seated. Hermione didn't have the heart to stop her, even though, listening to Pansy had been exhausting. Prior to that afternoon, Hermione did not know how much work actually went into planning a wedding.

Draco had noticed that Hermione was overwhelmed and, after much convincing, he had even managed to convince her to allow the house elves to cook supper. He had insisted that they were becoming restless and needed something to keep them busy. Hermione reluctantly agreed when Dipper, the house elf, appeared and begged her to allow him to cook for the family.

Despite the elves' eagerness, Hermione still did not like having them wait on her. To take her mind off the fact that elves were slaving over her, and to prevent her from walking in and helping them, Hermione decided to get a start on the gardening.

Hermione did not know how Draco managed the gardens around the house before she came to live there. She assumed magic had been involved or that Narcissa had taken of it. Nevertheless, gardening quickly became something that Hermione looked forward to every spring. She especially liked that she could keep an eye on Scorpius while he zoomed around on his broom; like he was doing currently.

As Hermione dug her spade shovel into the soft dirt, a shadow fell over her.

"You've got some dirt on you cheek, love," Draco said from behind Hermione. She turned around to see him place Lyra on the soft grass.

"Do I?" Hermione asked, rubbing the back of her gloved hand against her cheek.

Draco smiled softly and nodded. "It's still there – and you're making it worse. I'll get it." He bent down and gently brushed away the dirt, lingering for a moment. Hermione saw a glimmer of mirth in his eyes, which had been there ever since he proposed.

Hermione watched Draco straighten his back and look up at the sky. "Scorp!" he shouted as a blond blur flew by. "Scorp, come watch your sister. I want to talk to your mother for a moment."

Stiffly, Hermione got up just as Scorpius came off her broom and landed beside his sister. Hermione's brow pulled together in confusion when Draco pulled out his wand and casted a silencing charm around them.

"What's going on?" Hermione asked, brushing her hands against her pants, trying to brush off the dirt.

Completely caught off guard by Draco's actions, she could only assume that the silencing charm had meant Draco wanted to talk about something serious. She wondered what so important that it couldn't have waited till the children were asleep.

Putting a hand to her forehead to block out the sun, Hermione tried to get a good look at Draco. She was surprised to see that he still looked happy and not serious at all.

"There was something else," Draco said wrapping his arms around her waist, being mindful of the dirt, "I wanted to ask you – in addition to the proposal."

He leaned down to kiss her neck and cheek, making it hard for Hermione to actually concentrate on his words.

"Hmm," she moaned and leaned into his embrace. "What is it?"

"I wanted to ask you if you could legally adopt Scorpius," Draco said, smiling down at her. "I don't know why I've never suggested it before. I guess I never thought about it."

"Then why are you suggesting it now?" Hermione asked pulling away slightly. She was completely honored at the thought of becoming Scorpius' legal mother. Like Draco, however, she had never thought to file the official paper work because she already felt like she was Scorpius' proper mother. Nevertheless, she was curious why Draco was bringing it up so suddenly.

"I don't – everything is going _so_ well," Draco replied, running a hand thought his hair and looking up at the sky. "Usually, in my past anyways, when things finally start looking up something goes wrong. I just want some security, I guess. You know – in case Astoria comes back."

It felt like a tidal wave of ice water crashed over her. She had never thought of Astoria returning. It never seemed like it could be a possibility. She felt so stupid for never considering it. The mere thought of someone taking Scorpius away made Hermione lightheaded and nauseous.

Her anxiousness must have shown because Draco took her face in his hands.

"It's just as a precaution, Hermione. She's _never_ coming back," Draco soothed. "Besides, she forfeited her rights as a mother when she left."

His words, however, were little comfort to Hermione. Her mind was riddled with the thought of Astoria coming back and ripping Scorpius away from her.

"Can we go the Ministry tomorrow?" Hermione asked, a little panicky. "It is Monday, after all. I am sure if we get there first thing, we can have it all sorted out by noon."

"Hermione," Draco said firmly, "Hermione, stop worrying. Merlin, I never would have brought it up if I had thought you would be so bothered by this."

"It's a good thing you did bring it up!" Hermione continued dramatically. "How could we have been so careless! We should have done it when Lyra was born."

Softly placing a hand on Hermione's cheek, Draco stilled her nerves for only a moment. When Hermione looked up at him, she saw nothing but unyielding determination.

"Nothing," he emphasized, "_nothing,_ is going to happen. I would never allow anything or anyone to take Scorpius away from you. We can go tomorrow if it makes you feel better, but mark my words, that woman is never coming near my family."

Hermione's racing heart finally stopped its erratic beating. If there was one thing in this world that Hermione knew to be for certain was Draco's fierce protectiveness of his family. His protectiveness matched with her own, Hermione knew that nothing could take Scorpius or Lyra away.

::::

The next morning, however, Hermione insisted that they go to the ministry straight away. Kingsley had even managed to speed up the process by making sure they were first to be seen.

The process was quick and simple, helped greatly by Astoria absence. Since, Astoria had abandoned her child; she had already forfeited her rights as his parent. Hermione's case was helped even more by her and Draco's engagement. And by eleven o'clock, Hermione and Draco were finished with the paper work and were already on their way out.

"I promised I would meet with my father for lunch," Draco said as he leaned down to kiss Hermione quickly on the cheek. "He said there were _things_ we needed to discuss. Merlin knows what, but I had told him I would meet him at noon. You'll be alright getting home?"

Hermione smiled up at Draco and clutched the paperwork close to her. It was amazing, Hermione thought, how tiny sheets of paper lifted her spirits. The worry of Scorpius ever being taken from her was gone and she didn't think she could feel happier.

"I'll be alright," Hermione answered. "It's _you, _who we always have to worry about getting attacked."

The corners of Draco's mouth turned up slightly in a small smile. "You're right," he said, "get home safe, nevertheless. I'll be home before supper. You can explain everything to Scorpius if you wish. I know you're dying to."

Hermione's smile stretched even further and she reached up and gave Draco a quick peck on the lips. "I will! It feels so much better now, doesn't it? Anyways, I don't want you to be late. Have a nice lunch with your father and I'll wait for you at home."

Leaving Draco and going their separate ways, Hermione made her way to the Ministry's floo network. Quickly getting into the grand fireplace, green flames engulfed her and she spun home. She felt giddy like a child on Christmas morning. Racing through the house, she found Scorpius the study with Dipper, reading one of his favorite books.

"Thank you so much, Dipper, for watching the children," Hermione smiled, slightly out of breath. "Feel free to do whatever you wish! I, of course, mean do something you enjoy! And yes, that does exclude cleaning and cooking."

Dipper nodded eagerly before departing, leaving Hermione and Scorpius alone.

"Hey," Hermione said taking a seat beside Scorpius on the floor. "I have something very important to tell you. It will only take a moment and you can get back to your reading."

Scorpius shut his book and placed it to the side; giving Hermione's his full attention. "What is it?" He asked, looking up at her.

Taking a deep breath, Hermione started. "You know that I am your mum, no matter what, but I wasn't the same as other mums?" She watched Scorpius carefully as she spoke, making sure he understood what she was trying to say.

To her surprise, Scorpius chuckled lightly; a chuckle that was becoming very much like his father's. "You don't have to talk to me like I'm a baby, mum! I _am_ very smart," he said.

Hermione could help the laugh that rose up in her. Scorpius, it would seem, had inherited absolutely everything from his father. Hermione wondered if he had gotten anything from Astoria at all.

"Okay then," she continued. "Your father and I went to the Ministry today to make sure you are _legally_ my son. No one can say that I'm not _really_ your mum, anymore, because now I am."

Scorpius shrugged. "You already were," Scorpius said simply. He was clearly not grasping the importance of the situation, but Hermione smiled brilliantly nevertheless.

Scorpius would never know how much Hermione appreciated his nonchalant response. It had only solidified his acceptance of her as nothing other than his mother; which was more than anything Hermione could ever want.

"Well, if that's settled," Hermione laughed, "I'll let you get back to your reading."

:::

Hermione sighed heavily as she laid down all the plates and food for supper. Her good mood from earlier had been spoiled and nothing but nerves fluttered in the pit of her stomach. Draco had said that he would have been back by supper, but he had yet to arrive. Extremely on edge, Hermione tried her best not worry the children. Scorpius had already asked several times where Draco was. Each time more unconvincing than the last, Hermione told him that his father would be home soon.

She had even tried telling herself that Draco being late could be a good sign. It could mean that he and his father were getting along to so well, that he had simply forgotten the time. Hermione knew, however, that it was not a likely option.

Yet, if she waited any longer the food would be getting too cool to eat, so reluctantly, Hermione called out for Scorpius to come and eat. Placing Lyra down in her highchair, Hermione went to the window one last time to check for an owl.

Her heart leapt when she saw a spot growing closer in the sky. The owl could not get there soon enough, but once it did, it was an owl Hermione did not recognize.

Quickly reaching for the letter, Hermione saw the wax seal was embossed with the St. Mungo's logo. It took Hermione only a spit second to realize that anything the letter entailed, could only be bad news.


	10. Frustration

_- Hermione, I'm at St. Mungo's. I'm so sorry to worry you. I'll be home soon._

These were the only words Draco had time to scribble down before yet another Auror came up wanting his statement. Draco had started to get irritable an hour ago and with every Auror pestering him for answers he didn't know, Draco was increasingly becoming more and more short-tempered.

"Just a few more questions, Malfoy," said the man in uniform. Draco vaguely remembered him from Hogwarts, but could remember the mousy-blond's name.

"I've answered your questions ten times now," Draco hissed. "I don't know any more now than I did before. If I remember something, I'll be sure to tell Potter or Weasley about it."

The Auror scowled at Draco. "Malfoy, it is required of you to answer _my _questions. I don't want to write you up for withholding information from an Auror, but I will."

Just as Draco was about to lose his temper completely, the door to his side opened.

"Macmillan!" Ron shouted, coming out from the hospital room, "Bugger off, will you."

Clenching his hands into tight fist, Draco watched as Ernie Macmillan begrudgingly walked away, mumbling insults as he went. Once Macmillan was out of sight, Draco wearily rubbed a hand over his tired eyes and muttered thanks to Ron.

"Were you able to get an owl to Hermione?" Ron asked.

Draco nodded, "Yes, but I had to use one of the hospital's owls. Thanks, by the way, for making that happen. No one in this fucking hospital would let me get word to Hermione."

Draco had spent the afternoon arguing with both the Aurors and medi-witches. They refused to let him send a letter to Hermione until they were done questioning him and even then they refused. It wasn't until Harry and Ron showed up that Draco stopped being treated like a criminal. Draco was never so happy to see the duo, a fact which he knew his past-self would sneer at.

He would have sent a patronus, but he had yet to master the spell. The best he could manage was wispy silver smoke, which could easily pass for cigarette smoke. Making a mental note, Draco vowed to practice until he managed to cast something formidable.

"She's probably going mental with worry," Ron grinned.

"Yes, she probably is," Draco agreed. "I'm trying to get home as quickly as I can, but the healers still haven't figured anything out. I want to be here with my mother when we do hear the news."

Ron nodded and clapped Draco on the back. "I'll see what I can do. Maybe put some pressure to the healers."

"Thanks," Draco mumbled as Ron walked away from him.

Looking over at the hospital room door, Draco sucked in a deep breath before walking over to it. Slowly making his way in the room, Draco saw his mother clutching her hands in her lap. She was sitting in a chair next to the bed where Lucius was lying, nearly lifeless.

Lunch had been going so well. Draco had even considered forgiving his father for a moment.

::::

"_What did you want, father?" Draco tapped the table impatiently as his father took a long sip of tea._

_Lucius nodded, like he had momentarily forgotten why he had planned to meet Draco for lunch. Draco's nerves were wearing thin. He wanted to get home and celebrate with his family._

"_Oh, yes," Lucius said, placing the cup on its saucer. "Well, I know you still haven't forgiven me – which is perfectly understandable because I have yet to make up for my past mistakes."_

_Draco gave an undignified snort and rolled his eyes; which Lucius seemed ignored. Clearing his throat, Lucius continued._

"_I wanted to give you my congratulations, personally, about your engagement," Lucius smiled slightly, "I am very happy for you and Hermione – proud even."_

_Draco wasn't sure how to react for a moment. Curling up his lip, Draco shook his head. "You're happy for me? You're happy that I'm marring a muggleborn? A muggleborn who happens to be Potter's best friend?"_

_Lucius shrugged slightly, "I admire Hermione. She loves Scorpius. How many women would have accepted another man's child? Let alone a man whose family tortured her?"_

"_You admire Hermione?" Draco's voice raised in shock, which caused a few people to turn their heads. "What are you playing at?"_

_Shaking his head almost sadly, Lucius replied, "Nothing, Draco. I'm not playing at anything. And your mother is not forcing me to do this either. I truly like the girl. She's worthy of the Malfoy name, far more than that Greengrass girl; which I am also very sorry for."_

_Despite Lucius' good intentions, his words lingered unpleasantly in Draco's ears._

"_Worthy of the name?" Draco hissed. "The name is not worthy of _her_! She doesn't deserve all the shit what goes along with the Malfoy name. She's too good to be a Malfoy, don't get it confused, father."_

"_That's not what I meant," Lucius said, shifting uncomfortably. "And you're completely right. I meant that she's good for you – perfect for you and your family."_

_Draco took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "Yes – yes, she is," Draco said. An awkward silence fell, and Draco looked eagerly at the exit._

"_I am very proud of you, Draco," Lucius finally said. "You couldn't have become a better man or father."_

_And with that, Draco became truly speechless. He took a moment to let his father's words sink in. As a child, Draco would have done anything to make his father proud, absolutely anything. But after the war, and his marriage to Astoria, Draco loathed his father and the desire to make Lucius proud completely vanished._

_An unexpected feeling of accomplishment rushed through Draco. He could only answer his father with a curt nod._

_The rest of their lunch went very well and Draco actually found that he was enjoying his time with Lucius. Nevertheless, Draco was eager to get home. And after nearly an hour, Draco and Lucius were making their way home._

"_You should come over sometime and watch Scorpius fly," Draco asked almost timidly. "He's fantastic. I have no doubt he will make a Hogwarts team his first year – and I have no doubt that Hermione will hate it. She worries about him on a broom because she hates flying herself."_

_Lucius' eyes brighten with hopefulness and, after the shock wore off, he smiled. "Of course!" he said eagerly, "It would be –"_

_But Lucius was cut short and Draco turned just in time to see Lucius crumple against the cobblestones of Diagon Alley._

::::

"Mother," Draco greeted softly. Narcissa jumped slightly and Draco knew she had been too distracted with her own thoughts to have heard him come in – something which often happened with Hermione.

"Oh, Draco," she said, wringing her hands together more aggressively. She had been considerably strong since her arrival, but Draco knew that it was all show.

"Everything will be fine, mother," Draco tried to sooth, but he knew he lack the confidence needed to comfort his mother. The truth was, Draco was just as worried as she was. Lucius didn't look good and Draco knew that his father was at the bottom of the hospital's priority list.

"What happened, Draco?" his mother asked. She looked up at him with sad eyes, the lines in her face looking more pronounced.

Draco sighed and shook his head lightly, "I am sorry, mother, but I didn't see anything. There were so many people in Diagon Alley; I didn't see who attached him."

Narcissa only nodded solemnly and looked back at her unconscious husband. "How did you lunch go? Did it go well?"

"I can honestly say it went very well," Draco said and he placed a hand on his mother's shoulder. "I was – I was actually going to invite him over this week-end to watch Scorpius fly."

"That's nice of you," Narcissa responded softly.

Suddenly, there was a commotion in the hall. "Miss, you can't go in there," someone in the hallway said.

There was a sarcastic laugh, which Draco recognized immediate. "That's rich," the voice said before the door suddenly flew open.

Hermione marched in with wild, windblown hair. The woman healer stood in the doorway, her mouth hanging open in shock.

"She's family," Narcissa said sharply, dismissing the medi-witch, who continued to stand in the door way for a moment. She began to protest and Hermione shut the door in the healer's face, promptly cutting the woman off.

Draco heart soared a little. It wasn't until he had heard Hermione's voice that he realized he needed her here. She immediately ran towards him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

Burying her head into his chest, Hermione whispered, "I'm so sorry, Draco. I came as quickly as I could. I thought it had been you!"

"It's okay, love," Draco placed his chin on her head, taking comfort in her warmth. "Where are the children?"

Pulling back enough to look Draco in the eyes, Hermione replied, "I took them to Pansy's. I assumed that Ginny would have her hands full with two toddlers and three boys."

"And?" Draco asked eagerly, "How did Scorp take the news?"

"He didn't seem to grasp the importance of it. He only said that I was already his mum, as though the legality of it didn't matter," Hermione smiled.

"You legally adopted my grandson?" Narcissa, who had been momentarily forgotten, asked. Her voice contained the slightest sliver of happiness, of which Draco was extremely happy to hear.

"Um," Hermione started, "Uh – yes. We only just did it this morning. I'm sorry we didn't discuss the matter with you first."

"Oh, you misunderstand, my dear. I am thrilled you are legally his mother. He couldn't have a better one," Narcissa said, offering Hermione a small smile.

"Oh, we must celebrate," Narcissa continued without her usual excitement for planning parties. "Just as soon as - well, just as soon as…"

A young healer gently knocked on the hospital room door, interrupting Narcissa; who Draco strongly thought would not have been able to finish her sentence anyway. The young healer quietly let himself in, looking down at the files he had in his hands.

"Mrs. Malfoy, I presume," the healer said, looking at Narcissa. "I've come to discuss your husband's condition." The healer eyed Draco and Hermione; clearing indicating that they should leave.

Before Draco could say anything, Narcissa spoke. "It's alright, healer. I would rather they say with me. They are family," she said weakly.

"Very well," the healer said, turning to his clipboard once again. "I was told that this was urgent, so I'll just hurry along. I am Healer Whitby and I will be I be overseeing Mr. Malfoy's case. Unfortunately, we are unable to determine the spell that he came into contact with, making it impossible to treat it properly. We will continue running tests, but for now there is nothing we can do, expect continual observation."

Healer Whitby offered Narcissa a sad smile and to Draco's surprise, looked genuinely sympathetic.

"What does that mean exactly? How long will he be like this?" Hermione asked softly.

"It means that we cannot determine how long he will be unconscious. It could a day or it could be years. It is possible that over time his body will repair itself and he will wake on his own, but without knowing what spell hit him, we cannot be certain."

Draco felt nearly nothing except the concern for his mother, which quickly slithered its way through him. He looked over at Narcissa, who was clutching her hands together so tightly, that her knuckles where turning pale.

"Thank you," Draco muttered curtly to the doctor, effectively dismissing him. Draco knew his mother and he knew that she was using all her strength to hide her emotions from the healer; as was he. And Draco also knew that his mother would not break down in front of a stranger, so it was best for him to just leave.

The healer bowed his head and was no more out the door when a tear ran down Narcissa's cheek.

::::

By the time Draco and Hermione returned home, Draco was completely exhausted, emotionally and physically. He begrudgingly took a shower and got ready for bed. His mood was growing increasingly sour due to his frustration about the situation.

"It would have been better if he had just stayed in Azkaban," Draco muttered mainly to himself.

After the healer had left, Draco had tried to convince his mother to go home for the night. She stubbornly refused, stating that she would not leave her husband in case he woke. Draco had quickly realized that there was no sense arguing with her and let her stay.

Hermione whipped around to look at him. "Draco, don't say that! Your father has been trying to change, even I can see that. He doesn't deserve what's happening to him," Hermione reprimanded, her eyes wide.

"No, he does, Hermione," Draco said more harshly than he had intended. "And we would have been better off!"

"Our children love their grandfather, how dare you say that! And what about your mother? Do you think she deserves to lose her husband?"

"I meant what I said, Hermione!" Draco thundered. He didn't know why he was fighting with her and he knew that he shouldn't take his frustrations out on her. With all the emotions that were building up inside him, Draco had never been more thankful that they had left the children at Pansy's.

"I hope he never wakes up," Draco hissed selfishly.

There were times when Draco liked when Hermione got angry. He liked when her eyes and hair got wild and furious. However, it was not one of those times.

Before the words even left his mouth, he regretted them, but he was far too proud to admit it.

"You take that back, Draco Malfoy!" Hermione said in a low, dangerous voice. "You take that back right now!"

"I will not," his said childishly.

Hermione pressed her lips into a firm line and raised her chin in defiance. "Very well," she said icily. "I will be sleeping in the guest bedroom tonight and don't bother joining me."

Before he was able to say anything, Draco watched Hermione stomp out of the room. Instantly, Draco felt awful. He balled his hands up into fists and wanted nothing more than to break something. He barely restrained himself from doing so and threw back the covers on the bed. Flopping down, Draco groaned loudly.

::::

It was past two in the morning and Draco had yet to fall asleep, even despite his tiredness. Over the last few years, he had grown accustom to Hermione lying beside him in bed and he hated the thought of her being in another room. Furthermore, he hated her being angry with him. He didn't know why he had pushed it so far and he wished he hadn't.

He knew, without a doubt, that he would not be able to sleep without apologizing to her first. So, quietly he made this way out of bed and down the deserted hall to the spare room. Draco opened the door.

To his surprise, Hermione looked over at him, very much awake. "Done being a git?" she asked.

Draco sighed in relief and climbed into bed beside her. He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I am sorry," Draco said. "Very sorry. I was just –"

"Scared and upset and angry," Hermione interrupted and Draco could feel her smiling.

"Yes," he said softly, burying his face into her hair. "What are you still doing up?"

Hermione giggled lightly and answered, "Waiting for you to come and apologize. It took you long enough."

Draco smiled a bit. "I _am_ sorry."

"You're forgiven," Hermione replied, her voice heavy with sleepiness. "I am exhausted, Draco, as must you be. Let's go to bed."

And Draco surrendered to sleep almost instantly, tightly holding on to Hermione.


	11. The Patronus

Draco tugged on his hair, pulling it away from his eyes with great frustration. It was the sixth time Hermione had seen him do it in the last past hour. Lyra, who was playing on the floor, would draw Hermione's attention away from Draco every few minutes, but it wasn't long before Hermione was back staring at him.

Ever since Lucius' attack, Hermione had found herself keeping an overprotective and overcurious eye on her fiancé. His father's condition had become something that they ignored, for the most part. Hermione knew that Draco didn't want to talk about it and Hermione didn't push the topic. So, she spent her time watching him, wishing that there was something she could do to help ease his mind. He would catch her staring at him from time to time. Usually she would offer him a small smile and then quickly returned to her book, or writing or cooking. Sometimes, he would walk over a place a sweet kiss on her lips, which she knew to be his own type of reassurance.

But that afternoon, he was aggravated. Hermione had been watching him tinker with a modern-day, muggle alarm clock the Ministry had sent over. Every now and again, the alarm would sound, making Draco jump out of his skin without fail. Hermione knew that because it was a muggle object Draco was having an especially hard time fixing it. He didn't understand how muggle things worked as well as he did wizard things.

On top of that, his hair kept falling in his face, which Hermione knew, annoyed him to no end. If he were to let the blond strands fall, they went well past his cheek bones and nearly to his jaw line. Draco had been due for a hair cut a while ago, but had never gotten around to actually going to get it cut. Hermione had even noticed some days he had forgotten to shave.

Hermione had been too busy watching Draco to notice Scorpius come into the study. He managed to get Hermione attention by tugging on her sleeve and when she turned her attention to the young Malfoy, he nodded for her to follow him out into the hall.

Taking a deep breath, Hermione suspected that he had broken something again. The last time it had been an ancient vase. Hermione had casted a quick _repairo_ on it before Draco could find out. It wasn't that Draco was a strict father, but he often forgot what it was like to be a child. Hermione suspected that it was because he had never been allowed to be a proper child. Nevertheless, Scorpius had quickly learned to come to Hermione with issues like broken vases instead of his father.

Hermione was just about to ask him what he had broken this time when Scorpius spoke first.

"Mum?" Scorpius asked timidly, "Is dad okay? He seems – _off_ lately."

Hermione bit her lip nervously. Draco had refused to tell Scorpius about Lucius, something which Hermione was extremely uncomfortable about. And she would have probably protested if Scorpius and his grandfather interacted on a regular basis. But Scorpius only saw his grandfather every few months, so Hermione knew that they had some time before they needed to tell Scorpius. However, Hermione also knew that Scorpius was extremely smart and probably already suspected something.

"He's just not feeling very well, Scorp," Hermione answered, "I am sure he'll be feeling better soon."

The truth was, though, Hermione wasn't sure what was happening with Draco. Clearly, he was upset about his father, who had yet to wake. Nevertheless, it had been nearly two weeks and the healers were no closer to diagnosing Lucius. Hermione had never seen Draco so withdrawn and quiet. It reminded her greatly of their sixth year, when Draco had been assigned the daunting task of fixing the Vanishing Cabinet.

"Oh," Scorpius said, hanging his head slightly. "He hasn't played Quidditch with me in forever."

Hermione's heart when out to Scorpius. It was true that Hermione and Draco had not had enough quality time with their son in the last few weeks. Making a promise to not allow it to continue, an idea popped into Hermione's head. It would probably end very badly, but without much else to go on, Hermione made a quick decision.

"Well, I don't think he's well enough to play Quidditch yet, Scorp, but I have an idea that could be fun," Hermione smiled. Scorpius nodded his head eagerly and Hermione quickly ruffled his hair. "Let's go get your father, shall we?"

Scorpius face split it two with a wide, smile; the space were his tooth had been was now sporting the beginnings of an adult tooth. He practically skipped as he followed Hermione back into the study.

"Draco," Hermione started, "is it okay if you take a break for an hour?"

Draco shook his head, barely looking up at her. "Not right now, love. Maybe later."

From the corner of her eye, she could see Scorpius' fall. Hermione, however, would not be taking no for an answer.

"Draco," she said much more forcibly, causing him to look up. She gently placed a hand on Scorpius' shoulder and eyed Draco trying to get her point across. "I think it's time you take a break."

Draco reluctantly placed his wand down on the desk and smiled at his son. "Okay," he said, stepping out from behind his desk.

"Good," Hermione smiled, "because Scorpius and I are going to cut your hair."

There was a long moment of silence and Hermione watched Draco eyes widen in fear and disbelief. Scorpius, on the other hand, looked excited. The younger blond clapped his hands together and rocked on his heels.

"I don't think so," Draco said, shaking his head. "Potter told me to never let you cut my hair. He said bad things happen. I will not end up with mental hair!"

"Nonsense," Hermione giggled. She knew instantly what Draco was talking about. Harry must have told him about the night she cut his hair in the tent all those years ago. It had been the same night Ron had left. "I have an assistant," she continued, motioning to Scorpius. "Nothing will go wrong, I assure you. You _are_ in desperate need of a trim, Draco. So, pick up your daughter and let's go."

::::

Hermione giggled quietly every time Draco winced or cringed. It was as though, the hair cut was physically painful to him. He had reluctantly agreed to allow Hermione and Scorpius cut his hair when Scorpius begged. Draco still had troubles saying no to his son, some things would never change.

Draco bounced Lyra on his knee, more of a nervous tick than for her amusement. Every now and again he would make a funny face at her and she would sheik with laughter.

To Hermione's side, Scorpius stood on a chair, eagerly awaiting the next stand. Hermione would comb and measure the hair, placing it between her index and middle fingers. Scorpius would then cut just above where she was holding and Draco would wince simultaneously.

As Scorpius cut, Draco griped the towel round his shoulders tighter with his free hand. "We can afford to go to a salon, Hermione. Merlin, we can afford to have our own personal hair dresser. Remind me why I allowed you to do this again?"

"Because it's fun!" Scorpius shouted; causing the piece he had been cutting to go jagged and uneven. Hermione was thankful that he hadn't accidently snipped her finger.

"Mind your mother's fingers, Scorpius!" Draco said sternly, but Hermione could hear the anxiousness slip through in his voice. "And my ears for that matter."

"It's alright, Scorpius," Hermione said softly. "Just be sure not to jump with scissors. You could hurt yourself."

"Okay," Scorpius nodded and eagerly awaited another strand.

Hermione watched Draco pull his wand out of his pocket. He muttered something under his breath and silvery smoke emerged from the tip of his wand. Lyra laughed loudly and tried to catch the ill formed patronus.

Draco continued to practice the charm while Scorpius and Hermione cut his hair. After several attempts, Hermione noticed that Draco becoming aggravated again and she leaned down to kiss him gently on the cheek. Scorpius made a face and a gagging sound at the sign of affection, but Hermione noticed that Draco's next few attempts were stronger than the ones before the kiss.

In the end, Draco was not able to produce a proper patronus, but Lyra had fun trying to catch the airy silver. His hair cut, on the other hand, was a bit rough and choppy. Despite the hair's unevenness, Draco praised Scorpius' hairdressing skills, which made Hermione smiled. Draco insisted that it was the best hair cut he had ever gotten and Scorpius nearly bust at the seams with pride.

::::

Later on that night, while Hermione braided her hair before bed, Draco came into their bedroom. She was surprised when he wrapped his arms around her from behind and gently kissed her cheek.

"Thank you," he muttered against her skin.

Hermione smiled and asked, "What for?"

"For forcing me out of my bad mood and for making Scorpius' day," Draco said, pulling back slightly. "I hope you won't be too offended if I go to the salon tomorrow to get it evened out a bit."

Hermione giggled. "I won't, but Scorpius will. Be sure not to tell him."

Draco chuckled and flopped down on the bed. "Believe me, I won't. I think he's asked me fifty times if I like it."

Hermione laughed lightly. Scorpius could not talk about anything else the whole evening. He had asked Hermione about the same number of times if he could cut her hair also. Hermione thought back to that afternoon when he had been practicing his patronus charm and her brow pulled together. She wanted to help him because she knew it was frustrating him. And the last thing he needed now was extra stress.

"Can you get your wand out?" She asked trying an elastic hair tie on the end of her braid.

Draco raised his eyebrows suggestively. "So forward, love. Well, if you're in the mood, who am I to deny you?"

Hermione blushed deeply and rolled her eyes. "I meant your _magical_ wand, Draco."

Draco's face twisted into a smug grin. "I think you'll find that my _wand_ can be very magical, Hermione."

"Draco," Hermione groaned with embarrassment.

"Okay, okay," Draco laughed and pulled out his wand. "What do you want to do with it?"

"Can you cast your patronus?" Hermione asked sitting down on the bed beside him.

Draco sighed, "You know I am having troubles with it."

"Yes, but I think you're too distracted by your father's attack to truly focus on anything truly happy. So, I thought that I could take your mind off it," Hermione said almost shyly. "Just cast it."

Hermione leaned over and gently kissed the corner of Draco's lips. She felt the corners of his mouth turn up slightly in a smile just before he muttered, "Expecto Patronum."

Only wispy smoke came from his wand, but Hermione continued kissing him, moving from his mouth to his jaw and then his neck. She nibbled gently at the tender skin on his neck before moving her mouth to his ear.

"Again, Draco," Hermione tried to whisper in her sexiest voice, but she ended up just feeling silly. "Think of the happiest moment in your life and cast it again."

She placed a hand on his chest and slowly ran it down to his abs. His breathing became more labored as he said, "Expecto Patronum," once again.

From the corner of her eye, Hermione saw the shape form out of Draco's wand. It was whispy, but solid. Hermione gasped and Draco shot back.

"Please don't tell me that my patronus is a fucking ferret," Draco groaned. But it wasn't. The shape grew and the ghostly animal flicked out his bushy tail.

"It's a fox!" Hermione exclaimed as it bounced around the bathroom before standing at Draco's side.

Letting out a breathless laugh, Draco smiled widely. "That's a relief," he said before flicking his wand once again, making the fox vanish. "I thought that it might have been a dragon."

"Magical creatures are much harder to produce," Hermione shrugged. "I think the fox suits you - clever and sly."

Draco shook his head in astonishment. "I can't believe I finally did it."

"If you don't mind me asking, what were you thinking of?" Hermione asked timidly.

"I was thinking of you, obviously," Draco answered, running his hand threw his freshly cut hair. "Is that bad?" He winced. "My happiest memory should be of course Scorpius or Lyra being born, shouldn't it? But when I thought of them nothing happened. I guess with Scorpius' birth I had been more scared than happy. I knew that I would be raising him on my own and that he wouldn't have a loving mother. I worried about him not having a proper family every day until that day in Diagon Alley when you rescued us."

"Why that day?" Hermione asked; her eyes teary. She often thought back to that day. It was the first time Hermione had witnessed the loving side of Draco

He seemed to think about it for a moment before saying, "Because that day I knew you could give him everything he needed when I couldn't. I knew you could protect him and I knew that you could love him properly, like his mother should have. So, yes, I thought about you and how much better my life and Scorpius' life is because of you." He paused, rubbing a hand over his neck. Hermione saw colour flood to his cheeks. "And you kissing my neck didn't hurt because it felt bloody amazing."

It was Hermione's turn to blush. "Draco!" she scolded, playfully smacking his arm.

Catching her arm, Draco pulled her close to him. "Another thank you seems to be in order," he said huskily, staring down at her.

Before Hermione could even think, Draco's lip crashed down on hers and he was backing her into their bedroom. Slightly shocked, Hermione let him lead her through the bedroom. He didn't break the kiss until they were at their bed.

It had been a while since they had been this affectionate with each other. Draco had been worried about his father and Hermione had been worried about Draco, leaving both of them in a slump. But something had changed when Draco produced his patronus – like he had regained his confidence.

Hermione felt him slide his hands down her waist until he reached her bum. In one fluid motion, he lifted her up, so she was straddling him as he took a seat on the edge of their bed. Hermione took a moment to memorize his intense gaze. She cupped her hand over the side of his jaw, while she ran her other hand over his lips. With a deep sigh, Draco leaned into her touch.

"I love you," she whispered, bringing her forehead to rest on his.

Placing a hand on the back of her neck, Draco closed the short distance between their lips. The kiss, however, was quick.

"And I love you," Draco muttered against her lips. "I'll try to open up more about my feelings. I know I've been worrying you the last few weeks." Hermione nodded slightly and Draco chuckled. "I'll try," he said on last time before kissing her again.

Hermione moaned into his mouth and tugged his shirt up. Before she knew it they we both naked and Draco was rubbing his finger through her wetness. Flinging her head back onto the pillows, Hermione let out a groan of frustration.

"No teasing, Draco," she whined, "not tonight." But when she reached for his member, Draco quickly caught her hand.

"Sorry," he said, placing both of her wrists in his one hand and then holding above her head. "But tonight we make up for lost time." He leaned down so his lips were hovering by her ear. "I am going to make you cum so hard and so often, you'll be weak-kneed all day tomorrow."

Hermione shuddered at his words and at his warm breath caressing her sensitive skin. Moaning loudly, she could only manage a nod as Draco returned to his ministrations.


	12. Boy's Afternoon

Landing in St. Mungo's lobby, Draco quickly shook the soot from his clothes and hair.

The loud chaos that accompanied the hospital seemed oddly calmed. Very few healers and patients seemed to be busying about. Nevertheless, Draco made his way to his father's room with quick, meaningful strides. He wouldn't admit it to anyone else, not even Hermione, but his father's attack had left an anxious feeling in Draco's gut.

What if the curse had been meant for him and not his father? It seemed unlikely. Draco liked to believe that he was less hated than his father was. Yet, the thought worried Draco even more than his father being unconscious. Draco needed to be around for Scorpius and Lyra. The thought of him potentially being the one in the hospital bed instead Lucius made him physically ill.

It was selfish to think that way, Draco knew, but he couldn't help but feel like it was better that the curse had hit Lucius instead. And even though he knew that the curse was probably meant for Lucius, being out in public set Draco's nerves on edge. So, he made sure to walk quickly where ever he went.

He planned to go to the salon afterwards, to fix his hair, but he wanted his mother to see Scorpius' job first. Despite its jaggedness, Draco had been very impressed by his son's haircutting abilities. He had been sure that it would have ended with blood being spilt, but it hadn't. And he knew that his mother was going to be at St. Mungo's as opposed to the Manor.

When Draco had left, Hermione had still been sleeping. He instructed the house elves to take care of the children, if they should wake, and let Hermione have the morning to sleep in. He knew that she would be exhausted from their night before, a thought which brought a smirk to his face.

After his hair appointment, Draco decided that he was going to visit with Blaise. It had been a while since Draco talked to him and he was curious how Blaise was dealing with soon to be fatherhood.

To Draco's surprise, some of the healers smiled at him as he made this way to his father's room. Some even greeted him with a 'good morning'. His eyebrows pulled together in confusion and he took one look behind him before entering his father's room.

Narcissa had insisted in paying for a private room for her husband, even though Draco knew it was to be redundant. Any patient, once they realized they were rooming with a Malfoy, would have quickly made a transfer request. Draco knew that even in a non-private room, Lucius would not have had to share his room. Nevertheless, Draco also recognized that the private room eased some of the stress Narcissa was feeling.

As he entered the room, Draco noticed that his mother look much more tired than she had the last time he had saw her, which was only two days ago. Dark circles ringed her eyes and her hair had lost its glossiness. Not to mention, she had also lost weight in the weeks since Lucius' attack.

"Mother," Draco started cautiously, "did you go home last night?"

Narcissa turned to look at her son and then smiled. "Oh, Draco, I didn't know you were coming in. I thought you were one of the healers."

"Don't avoid the question, mother," Draco said, taking off his jacket. "Did you go home last night?"

"Well, of course I did," Narcissa answered, looking taken aback. "I just haven't been sleeping well, which I think is perfectly understandable!"

Draco sighed heavily and took a seat in the chair on the opposite side of Lucius. "Then you should take something, mother – a dreamless sleep potion, perhaps."

"Nonsense," Narcissa shook her head and waved a hand at her son. "I don't like the taste. I think the important question is what happened to your hair?"

A smile tugged at Draco's lips. "Don't you like it? Your grandson did it, with the help of Hermione." He dragged a hand through his hair, making the unevenness even more noticeable.

Draco watched as his mother's eyes flickered a bit with amusement and a coy smile formed on her face.

"Well in that case, it is very good for a seven year old," she said.

"I have no doubt you will be hearing about it sometime today, as soon as he wakes probably. He's very proud of it," Draco smiled.

Narcissa let out a little chuckle which filled Draco of relief. His mother had to be one of the strongest people he knew. No matter how many hits she took, she took them with grace and dignity. Draco was relieved to know that she was taking this situation just as well; he had worried that this might have been the last straw.

"This place seems unusually friendly today," Draco noted, remember those healer who had smiled at him in the hall.

"Oh yes, well when you've spent nearly two and a half weeks here, you start getting friendly with people," Narcissa said, flattening the skirt of her dress. "I talk to them – mostly tell them about my lovely grandchildren. I think most, in this hospital anyways, are starting to realize that we are no longer _Death Eater_ snobs that we once were. But it's mostly due to the great job you've done in reclaiming the Malfoy name – making it better."

For a moment Draco was speechless. Not because of his mothers words, but because she had been able to change so many opinions in such a short amount of time. Draco had spent years keeping his head down and stating out of trouble. None of it, however, had been as affective as simply talking to people like his mother had. He felt so stupid for not realizing it sooner. But having been raised to not associate with others, he was not surprised by his choices.

Now, like so many time before, he wondered how different of a person he would be today if his mother had raised him on her own. Would have been more like Nymphadora Tonks who had been raised by Andromeda? He now saw that his mother was much more like Andromeda than she was Bellatrix – friendly and reserved at the same time.

Nodding slowly, Draco smiled at his mother. "I should be going. I don't want to miss my appointment."

"Thank you for showing me your hair," Narcissa smiled back. "I'll be sure to tell Scorpius what a marvelous job he did."

Draco nodded in acknowledgment before taking one last look at his father. He looked the same as the day he was brought in. Maybe more ashen, but the same. Draco wondered if his father would be strong enough to pull through. A sinking feeling crept into the pit of his stomach when he realized that he probably wouldn't. Lucius was aged, nearly sixty and Azkaban made him age even beyond his years. It was harder for older wizards to recover from curses.

::::

"I am sorry to hear about your father, Draco," Blaise's wife said. Her pregnancy had progressed considerably since the last time Draco has seen her. She looked swollen everywhere except her face, which remained thin, but glowing.

"Thank you, Gwen," Draco said as he took a seat in the leather chair. "It has been hardest on my mother."

"I'm sure it has," Blaise said, passing Draco a tumbler. The strong smell of Firewhiskey hit Draco's nose instantly and he realized that it had been a while since he last drank.

"I am sorry that I have to leave as soon as you're here , but I've promised my mother that I would go shopping with her for baby supplies. There is still so much we need," Gwen smiled before kissing Blaise on the cheek. "Have a good 'boys' afternoon."

Draco watched Blaise as he watched his wife leave. As soon as she was out of hearing range, Blaise flopped back in the sofa and sighed heavily.

"Draco," he groaned. "How did you do it, mate? Twice!"

"What are you talking about?" Draco asked, slightly shocked by his friend's behaviour.

"This whole father thing! The baby's coming in two months and I am already going mental with worry," Blaise answered, looking almost crazy. "What if I drop it!"

Chuckling loudly, Draco threw his head back, which warranted him a nasty look from Blaise. "You're not going to drop your baby, Zabini! You never once had any problems with Scorpius. You'll be fine."

"But that was _your _kid. I didn't have any _real_ responsibilities," Blaise countered.

Winching Draco said, "You're never babysitting for me again then, if that's the case."

"You know what I mean. I wasn't raising Scorpius. This baby is going to learn all my bad habits and qualities. I am going to be raising another human being!" Blaise ranted before continuing quietly. "What if I'm a bad father? I don't even know what a good father is – mine was never around."

Looking seriously at Blaise and making sure that his friend was listening, Draco started, "I had a father, and he was probably one of the worst fathers anyone could possibly have – influence wise. Just because we had shit fathers doesn't mean we will be bad fathers too. I like to think that I'm doing a pretty decent job, don't you think?"

Blaise nodded and took a sip from his own Firewhiskey.

"Besides," Draco continued jokingly, "Gwen's going to be a wonderful mother, just follow her lead."

"That sounds like a better plan," Blaise grinned. "She seems to know everything about raising a baby – like she was born with the knowledge of how to be a good mum."

Draco chuckled lightly because it reminded him so much of Hermione. She had known how to be a mum even before she was one.

"So," Blaise said, much more calmly, "I heard that you're getting married again. Congratulations. I hope that this time around you get what you deserve."

Shaking his head, Draco smiled, "I'm getting much more than I deserve."

"Rubbish!" Blaise exclaimed. "To be honest, though, I never thought you would marry again. The whole Astoria engagement was a disaster – start to finish."

"Believe me," Draco said, raising his brow, "I never thought I would remarry either. It's going to sound awfully cheesy, but I know I am going to spend the rest of my life with Hermione. And she deserves it, you know. She deserves to have a husband – not just a boyfriend." Draco watched Blaise nod in agreement.

Taking a big gulp of his drink, Blaise finished by whistling slowly. "Merlin, I never thought I would see the day when Draco Malfoy became a full on sap."

"Shut it," Draco growled as Blaise laughed.

After a moment, Blaise asked, "How are the kids?"

"Great," Draco answered, "Lyra's walking now and Scorpius lost his first tooth. You should have been there. My mother was babysitting while Hermione and I attended the Ministry's annual ball and when we came home, Scorpius was running towards us – his mouth gushing blood. Hermione had a fit thinking he had hurt himself." Blaise laughed along with Draco, before Draco continued, "She adopted Scorpius, I forgot to tell you."

Draco watched Blaise's eyes widen in surprise. "You mean legally?" He asked.

Nodding, Draco took another sip from his drink. "Yes," he said when he had finished swallowing. "We hadn't planned it out really, but I had been thinking of asking her to for a long time. We went to the Ministry and had it all filed the morning of the day my father was attacked."

"That's really great, Draco," Blaise said. "Wow, we should celebrate! Another drink!"

Blaise got up and retrieved the bottle of Firewhiskey from the cabinet. Even though, Draco has yet to finish his first glass, Blaise filled it up once again. Topping of his own tumbler, Blaise raised his glass.

"To Scorpius for finally having a well-deserved mum," Blaise said and he raised the glass to his mouth. Before he drank, however, he quickly raised it again and continued, "And for having not further ties with that crazy bitch, Astoria!"

Now that was something Draco found worth celebrating. Even though he knew that Astoria was never coming back; knowing that she held absolutely no power over Scorpius was relieving. He hadn't realized how much the issue stressed him until he saw Hermione signing the paper which made Scorpius legally hers. And Draco hadn't even had time to enjoy that moment because ever since that day he had been too preoccupied with his father's situation.

Making a mental note, Draco decided that when he got home, he would be sure to properly celebrate with his family.


	13. Celebration

When Draco returned home, he was welcomed by the sound of squealing children. Before he had time to step out of the fireplace, a flash of blue crashed into his leg.

Teddy took a few steps back and looked up at Draco. Smiling innocently, the child said, "Oops, sorry Uncle Draco."

In the beginning, Draco had protested to being called uncle. It wasn't that he didn't like Teddy, but he just didn't feel like 'uncle' was the proper titled for their relationship. He hadn't even met the kid until he was eight years old. However, Teddy insisted, stating that Hermione was his aunt, and therefore Draco was his uncle. It was hard to argue with an eight year old, Draco concluded. There had been a few times Draco tried to tell Teddy that, blood-wise, he was more like a cousin, but it had only confused the child. So, nearly three years later, Draco was still being called Uncle Draco by Harry's children.

"I thought I heard you come through," Hermione said, turning the corner to come into the sitting room.

From behind her, Scorpius and James came rushing through to catch up with Teddy.

"As you probably guessed, the Potter's are here, and so are Ron and Pansy," Hermione smiled, reaching up to touch his freshly cut hair. "It looks nice."

"Thanks," Draco muttered before leaning down to kiss her gently on the lips. Pulling away, Draco saw from the corner of his eye the boys making gagging faces. Chuckling Draco leaned back in to kiss Hermione once again; which warranted squeals of disgust from the boys.

"And thank you for letting me sleep in," Hermione said. "Even though I strongly disapprove of you using the house elves to do so."

"Oi, are you guys coming?" Draco heard Ron shout from the other room.

"Yes," Hermione shouted back. "He has news, supposedly. That's why he came over. He's been waiting for you to get home."

"This should be interesting," Draco smiled, guiding Hermione back out of the room.

"I couldn't agree more," Hermione nodded. "Come on boys."

Looking slightly apprehensive, James, Scorpius and Teddy looked at one another before rushing back out of the sitting room. Following behind them, Hermione lead Draco to the living room.

The living room differed greatly to the sitting room. The sitting room worked mostly as a welcoming area. It was where the Floo fireplace was, where guests got their first impression of the house and, by extension, an impression of Draco himself. The sitting room was pristine and impersonal.

The living room, however, was homey. Draco would be lying if that weren't entirely Hermione's doing. She had brought her television and photos from her old house. The television was hardly ever used, but the photos, Draco hated to admit, did make the room more – warm. She had even added dozens more of Lyra and Scorpius. Overall, the living room had more character than the sitting room, which it why it had quickly became Draco's favorite room in the house.

Sure enough, Draco entered the living room to see Harry, Ginny and Pansy sitting on the sofas. Ron, on the other hand, eagerly paced the room.

"Finally," Ron breathed, throwing his hand out to the sides.

Pansy offered Draco an apologetic smile before reaching out to Ron. Placing a hand on his forearm, Pansy effectively stopped Ron from pacing.

"Thank Merlin you're here," Harry said, wearily eyeing Draco. "He's been driving us all mad!"

Draco took a moment to catch up, his eyebrows pulling together in confusion. It was nearly impossible for Draco to use to the idea of being Potter and Weasley's friend. There were often times when he still thought of them to be Hermione's friends and not his. But then there were moments, like just then, when he realized that he was now a member of their core friend group.

Draco couldn't say that it didn't feel good to have loyal friends because it did, but it was also very strange. His Slytherin friends, with the exception of Blaise and Pansy, had never been loyal. Crabbe and Goyle had been more like minions than actual friends. Sure, after the war Draco and Goyle became better friends, but Draco hardly ever saw him.

"Go on, tell us," Hermione laughed, breaking Draco from his thoughts.

Clapping his hands together once, Ron started. "Okay," he said, "Two bits of news. The first, Harry already knows about and well, Pans knows both, so-"

"Get on with it, Ron," Ginny nearly shouted, tapping her foot impatiently.

Scowling at his sister, Ron continued, "Shacklebolt announced last week that Gawain Robards is stepping down as Head of the Auror department. So a few days ago, he pulled Harry into his office."

"Oh," Hermione gasped, "Congratulations, Harry! You're going to be a wonderful Head Auror."

Shaking his head, Harry looked back at Ron, "No, not exactly. Kingsley _did_ offer me the position. But with Albus, James and Teddy, I don't have to time to fully commit to a job _that_ demanding. And I would much rather spend my time with the children, so-"

"Kingsley said he would find someone else," Ron interrupted. "He asked me yesterday if I was interested in the position and today I accepted. I'm going to be Head Auror!"

Hermione gave a cried of delight before jumping up and giving Ron a big hug.

"That's so wonderful, Ron!" She said, pulling away. "I'm so happy for you!"

As she said the words, Draco's brow pulled together for a moment. He hadn't noticed until Hermione had expressed her own excitement that he was also very happy for Ron. It was an extremely odd feeling to notice. And once again, Draco was taken back by the fact he was friends with Weasley and Potter.

Taking a second to look over at Pansy, Draco saw something that he had only ever seen a few times - pride. Sure, Pansy was a prideful person, but when she looked proud of something she had done, she always looked somewhat smug. When she was proud of someone else, however, that smugness vanished. The only other times Draco had seen that look was when Scorpius and Lyra had been born.

Draco let the happiness flow through him. Pansy, Draco realized, truly loved Weasley. If Draco was being honest, he never thought that they would last. Pansy was high maintenance and Ron was very easy-going. They fought constantly and never seemed _that_ serious, even though they had been dating for over two years. Nevertheless, Pansy's happiness meant a lot to him and he was ecstatic that she had been able to move on from Blaise – even if it was Weasley who she moved on too.

Ginny groaned. "Great," she said, "the Wizarding world is no longer safe." There was playfulness in her voice, however, which told Draco that she was secretly very proud of her brother.

"Shut it, Gin," Ron said, but the smile was still plastered all over his face.

"Congratulations, Weasley," Draco chuckled at the red-head.

"That's not all," Pansy grinned. "Go on," she encouraged Ron and Draco noticed how her eyes glinted. She smoothly got up from her seat to stand beside Ron and he quickly took her hand in his.

"Okay, well being Head Auror means I get a big raise," Ron smiled. "So, Pansy and I have decided to buy a house together. It's something that we've discussed a lot – for a while now. The added pay gave us the extra push to finally take our relationship to the next level."

Ron seemed to burst with happiness as he delivered his big news and Pansy's face mirrored his. Draco couldn't remember a time when she had looked so incandescently happy.

As Harry, Hermione and Ginny congratulated the couple, Draco went over to give Pansy a tight hug. Even though he had gained the Golden Trio as friends, Pansy would always be his best friend. Their friendship was something that he knew he would never have with the others.

"Congratulations," Draco said to her as she wrapped her arms around him. "You know it's not too late to back out," he jokingly whispered so only she could hear. "He _is_ a Weasley after all."

"Yes, but he's_ my _Weasley," Pansy laughed and pulled away, "And I wouldn't back out for all the money in the world."

"And here I thought," Potter started, "Ron was going to take after Charlie and be a bachelor for the rest of his life. Here's to you, Parkinson."

Pansy nodded in acknowledgement, grinning smugly, and Ron's ears went slightly pink around the edges.

"Just because I waited until a normal age to settle down, unlike the rest of you," Ron said, eyeing Hermione and Harry. He didn't bother finishing the sentence, however.

Clapping his hands together once, Draco remembered the promise he had made to himself at Blaise's. "Well, this calls for a celebration."

"We're only moving in together, Draco," Pansy said, bemused.

Reaching out, Draco pulled Hermione to his side and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "We're not only going to celebrate you two moving in together and Weasley's promotion," he continued. "Hermione and I haven't properly celebrated our engagement or Hermione legally adopting Scorpius. We'll add this in and celebrate everything tonight."

"I think that's a lovely idea," Hermione smiled. "The boys can stay the night, so you two don't have to worry about getting home early. Albus can sleep with Lyra in her cot and it would be nice for Scorpius to have some friends over – to take his mind off things for a while. I'm afraid Draco and I have been distracted the last few weeks and haven't had much time to entertain him."

"That's okay with me," Potter said, turning to his wife. "What about you, dear?"

Ginny nodded, widening her eyes dramatically. "I could really use a night to have some fun. I love my boys, but they are a lot to handle. A night with them out of my hair would be nice."

"I can have the house elves watch over them discreetly – just to make sure no one gets hurt," Draco said. He didn't have to look down to see that Hermione was frowning. "Come on, love. They are being paid and getting benefits, just like any witch or wizard. It's a job – not _servitude_."

"You're fighting a losing battle, Malfoy," Ron chuckled. "Better to just quit while you're a head."

There was a moment of silence while everyone waited for Hermione to talk. "Okay, I am agreeing to this only because I do think we should celebrate and I don't want the children getting hurt if they choose to play in another room!" Hermione scowled.

"Wicked," Ron grinned. "Let's celebrate."

::::

The children had long ago been put to bed. Lyra had only gone to bed for Ron, unlike Albus who made himself at home in Lyra's cot, much to Draco's annoyance. Furthermore, it seemed that Lyra was entering her terrible twos. She had whined and wailed at Hermione and Draco when they tried to put her down, but hushed right up in Ron's arms.

"What can I say," Ron said, picking back up his drink, "Children love me."

"That's because you still are one," Ginny countered, who was currently sitting on Potter's knee.

Ron simply scowled and Pansy moved closer to him. "Maybe it's you're lovely voice," she said, draping herself over him. "You have such a nice voice."

"Merlin," Draco cringed, "How much have you had to drink, Pans?"

"The same as 'Mione," Pansy answered.

"Hey!" Hermione said as she re-entered the sitting room. "I've only had a few glasses! I brought some biscuits."

Despite only having a few glasses, Draco could tell that Hermione was well on her way to becoming drunk. She rarely ever drank and when she did it was never more than two glasses. He wasn't going to stop her, however. Even Hermione needed a night to loosen up and have fun.

"So," Potter said, "How's your father? Any progress?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Draco noticed Hermione shoot him a worried look. Ignoring it, Draco shook his head. "No," he said. "But let's not let that ruin our night. We're meant to be celebrating."

There was an awkward moment of silence before Pansy cleared her throat. "We were thinking of maybe finding a home in Wimbourne or Chudley. They're nice areas, wouldn't you agree?"

Snorting lightly, Ginny said, "I can understand why Ron would want to live in Chudley."

Shooting his sister a glare, Ron started to say something, but Pansy interrupted him.

"Yes," she giggled, "I am afraid that our house will be decorated completely in orange. But it is a nice area, isn't Ronny?"

"Yes it is," Ron answered turning his attention away from Ginny to smile down at Pansy.

"It is a nice area, though," Pansy said, turning her attention back to Ginny. "And having the Chudley Cannon's close by is only an added bonus."

"What about you two," Ron changed the subject, turning to Draco and Hermione. "Have you decided on a date yet?"

"A date?" Hermione asked. "Oh! You mean for the wedding. Well, we having discussed it really."

"You haven't?" Potter asked; his brow pulled together in confusion. "That isn't like you Hermione. You're usually planning long before any of us have a clue what's going on."

"Yeah," Ron piped up, "Like with the Polyjuice in our second year."

"Polyjuice?" Draco eyes shot to Hermione, who seemed completely flustered.

"It's nothing," she started, but was interrupted by Ron.

"We thought you were the heir to Slytherin," Ron laughed, "So in second year, we made some Polyjuice potion and spied on you to see if you were behind the Chamber of Secrets."

Laughing hysterically, Pansy whipped tears from her eye. "That's brilliant."

He took a moment to wonder how many other rules the Golden Trio had broken while in Hogwarts. To his surprise, Draco wasn't angry at them. He had always suspected that they had tried something like that; especially after Crabbe and Goyle had acted so strange that one night.

Getting up from her seat, Hermione made her way over to Draco with pleading eyes. "Are you angry with me?"

Leaning down, Draco kissed her temple and pulled her close. "I'm just shocked and slightly impressed. I guess I am mostly surprised by the fact that you were twelve when you successfully brewed a very complex potion. Even I had troubles brewing it."

"Well," Ron said, rubbing a hand over his mouth to hide his grin. "It was _mostly_ successful."

Draco looked back down at Hermione, who had going bright red. "Hush, Ron!"

"She turned herself into a cat!" Harry exploded.

"Harry!" Hermione cried, stomping her foot.

Draco tried to hold back the chuckled that rose up in this throat, but was unsuccessful. Hermione shot him a pointed look and stumbled away from him.

"I'm sorry," Draco tried to stifle his laugh. "But even you have to admit – it's hilarious."

"It was traumatizing!" Hermione nearly shouted. Smiling coyly, she continued, "But not as traumatizing as vomiting slugs, I suspect."

Ron's ears when red and he looked down at Pansy.

"Slugs?" she said disgusted. "Slugs were in your mouth."

"Merlin! I remember that! You were trying to curse me?" Draco grinned.

"And for good reason," Ron replied defensively.

"I am never kissing you again!" Pansy cried. "Slugs!"

Ron, however, smirked and scattered loud kissed all over Pansy's face. She squealed and tried to move away from his assault.

While all the attention was on them, Draco took the moment to wrap his arms around Hermione's waist.

"I also remember why he was defending you," Draco whispered, "And I will promise to spend forever trying to take back the pain I caused you."

"Um," Hermione sighed, leaning into his embrace, "I think I like the sounds of that." She tried to twist her face around to look at him, but lost her footing and swayed slightly.

"I think it's time you get cut off," Draco laughed.

Stubbornly, Hermione shook her head. "No, I'm completely fine!"

::::

Directly in his ear, Hermione let out a high pitch giggle. She wrapped her arms tighter around his neck and Draco shifted her weight in his arms, making sure he has a better grip on her back and her legs.

"Quit squirming, Hermione," Draco huffed. "I don't want to drop you."

"You won't drop me," Hermione slurred, "I have complete faith."

Chuckling, Draco leaned forward and gently placed her on their bed. "You're pissed, love."

"Firewhiskey," she hummed, "it goes straight to my head. That's how we got together – remember, Draco?"

Smiling, Draco whispered, "Yes, I remember. Now would you mind greatly untangling your arms from my neck?"

He tried to pry her arms from around his neck, but she only held on tighter. Her eyes closed and she shook her head with a small smile on her face.

"I don't think I will," Hermione laughed. "I want to be close to you. Sometimes it feels like I can only be close to you physically – which is fine because you're very fit."

"What do you mean by that?" Draco questioned, trying to pull away slightly. He only managed to drag her forward with him.

"Well," Hermione blushed, "I don't want to seem superficial, but your abs would make any woman swoon, not to mention you have that 'v' thing at your hips," Hermione voice went up a decimal, "And your face! You have the most beautiful face."

Shaking his head, Draco couldn't help but feel faltered and a little guilty. It felt like he was taking advantage of her state. All the things she was saying were clearly things she would have kept to herself if she had not been intoxicated.

"That's not what I meant," Draco coaxed softly. "What did you mean about being physically close to me?"

Waving her hand dismissively, Hermione scrunched up her face. "Nothing – well, you know you don't open up to me. You keep everything bottled in and sometimes it seems like you're going to _explode_!" Hermione giggled before her expression turned somber. "Some days, I feel like you might never open up to me – like the situation with your father, for instance. You've never talked about it. I waited for you to open up and you didn't – not really, which is fine because that just how some people are. But, but I'm still waiting."

Frowning, Draco dropped down on his knees beside the bed. He knew he kept things bottled up, but that was all he had ever known to do. His mother and father were the same way; they never talked about their feelings. He hadn't realized that it had been an issue. Sure, Hermione had offered to listen if ever wanted to talk, but he wasn't that kind of person. He preferred to sort out through things himself and didn't see how sharing his problem with others would help. Then he realized that maybe he never had someone who he _wanted_ to share everything with.

"I'm sleepy," Hermione muttered and reached out to play with his hair.

"Hermione?" Draco muttered. She hummed in response. "Hermione, I promise to try harder. I'll try to open up. I'm just not sure how, but I promise I'll try. But I think that it might be for the best if you stop waiting because this might be something that I can't do."

He knew, however, that his words fell on deaf ears. Hermione would not doubt forget about their conversation in the morning and he probably would be too cowardly to bring up the topic again.

Sighing, Draco got up. Hermione started to breath heavily and Draco knew that she was sleeping. He reached out and gently took of her shoes and socks, being mindful not to wake her. Then he undid her trousers and shimmy her out of them too. He threw everything on the floor, being uncharacteristically messy, but he would deal with that in the morning.

Then, after taking off his own clothes, Draco got into his side of the bed. He reached down and pulled the decorative throw blanket up, since Hermione was on the top of their duvet, and covered them both.

Unconsciously and habitually, Hermione snuggled into his chest and he pulled her close. He kissed the top of her head before reluctantly falling asleep too.


	14. Breakfast and Broomsticks

In the morning, Hermione woke with severe cottonmouth and a splitting migraine. Groaning loudly, she tried to remember how she got to bed the night before. Draco must have helped. She noticed that her jeans and socks had been taken off and she was sure she had not been in state to care about whether or not she slept in her trousers.

Looking over at Draco side of the bed, she saw that he had already gotten up. She suspected, though, that he had awakened because of Lyra and Albus.

Squinting out of her left eye, she saw a tall vial of, what she assumed was, a potion that would take away her hangover. Draco must have also gotten it for her, knowing that she would need when she woke. The thought made her heart flutter. He always surprised her with his thoughtfulness and she didn't think she would ever get use to that side of Draco.

Without delay, and with great agony, Hermione drank the potion down in one big gulp. It was bitter and it made her face pitch all up with its tartness.

Thinking back to night before, Hermione tried once again to remember how the night ended. Mostly, however, she wondered how she had allowed herself to get into such a state. She never ever drank that much and she wondered why she had done so the night before. Maybe the stress of the engagement and Lucius had taken a bigger toll on her than she thought.

Feeling much better as the potion took effect instantly, Hermione dragged her body out of bed. It was the second morning she had slept in and was starting to feel incredibly lazy.

She heard giggles come from the kitchen and Hermione made her way there. Sure enough, she found James and Lyra playing on the floor, while Draco made breakfast.

"Mummy," Lyra squealed as she entered the room. The tiny blonde raised her chubby arms in the air, reaching out to Hermione.

"Good morning, sweetheart," Hermione said as she bent down to pick her up. Placing a kiss on her daughter's head, Hermione walked over to the table. Setting Lyra down in her booster chair, Hermione quickly conjured up a second for Albus.

She turned around to see that Albus had gotten up from his spot on the floor and had followed them to the table. He wobbled slightly on his stubby legs, but smiled widely nevertheless. Laughing, Hermione bent down to pick him up also and place him beside Lyra at the table.

"He's already following her around like a lost puppy, Draco," Hermione smiled, "And I am sure it's only going to get worse with age."

Turning away from the frying pan, Draco pointed his spatula at Hermione. "Don't you even joke about that. I may be friends with Potter, but I'll be damned if my daughter marries his son," he said seriously before turning back to the eggs and bacon he had cooking.

Giggling lightly, Hermione went up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "I never said anything about marriage – only that they might be each other's first loves."

Goaning, Draco said, "That's not any better."

"Thank you for the potion," Hermione said, changing the subject. Even though, Hermione liked to joke about it, she knew the thought of losing his daughter to a boy one day really bothered Draco. "And thank you for putting me to bed last night. I shouldn't have drank that much."

She could feel Draco grinning before she saw it. Looking over his shoulder quickly, Draco gave her a smug smirk.

"Quite alright, love," he replied, "it was _enlightening_."

Burring her head into his back with embarrassment, Hermione groaned, "Oh Merlin, what did I say?"

"Only that I'm really, really fit," Draco said before chuckling. "And then you went on to tell me which features of mine you found most attractive."

Groaning again, Hermione felt her cheeks burn red. "I did not!"

"Oh yes, my dear, you did," Draco smirked.

"Great! Like I need for you to get a bigger head," Hermione sighed.

Draco, however, only responded with more laughing and went back to flipping the eggs. The thought of Draco taking care of her while she was intoxicated was embarrassing, but she was sure that it would have been funny to have seen. A small smile formed on her lips at the thought of Draco trying to deal with her drunkenness.

"Are the boys awake?" Hermione asked, contentedly. Taking a deep breath, Hermione breathed in Draco's scent. He smelt fresh and clean, and Hermione knew that she must have smelt like a brewery.

Nodding, Draco reached out to turn off the stove. He moved the pan of the hot burner before turn around to face her. He placed his hands on each side of her face before leaning down to kiss her gently.

"They are outside playing Quidditch," Draco said once he had pulled away. "Scorpius is going to surpass the Hogwarts Quidditch team and move straight on to the National League if he continues practicing like this."

Hermione smiled, "He is just trying to make you proud."

"He could do anything and I would be proud of him, but at this rate, I'm going to have to buy him a new broom every year because he's wearing them out from practicing very day, all day," Draco chuckled.

"Oh, let him be," Hermione said dismissively, moving to set the table. "You buy Lyra everything her little heart desires and she can't even formulate proper sentences yet."

"I just don't want her crying when I don't get her what she wants. I hate it when she cries," Draco muttered and he leaned down to give the little girl a loud kiss on her curly haired head.

"She's spoiled, Draco," Hermione said matter-of-factly. "And you can't spoil one, without spoiling the other. You started this with your inability to say no."

Draco sneered slightly and muttered something under his breath as he walked to the patio door.

"What was that?" Hermione asked.

"I'll be saying no when Potter here asks to marry her!" He huffed before placing his figures in his mouth and whistling. "Boys!" He shouted, "Breakfast is ready!"

One by one, James, Scorpius and Teddy touched down at a speed that made Hermione's heart pound in her chest. Practically falling from the sky, the three boys made their way to the house.

Hermione knew now that Scorpius liked to scare her while he was on a broom. Furthermore, she knew that with all his practicing, she didn't really have a reason to be so nervous. But his stunts scared her silly anyways.

"Scorpius Malfoy, what have I told you about landing like that! You are going to break a leg one of these days and don't come to me when you do!" Hermione scolded.

Her threat however, did not seem to faze the boys. Scorpius smiled innocently before saying, "Sorry, Mum. It won't happen again."

"Well, that was a _blatant_ lie," Draco grinned almost proudly.

"Don't encourage him!" Hermione scoffed, which only warranted sniggers from the boys.

"Sorry, Aunt Hermione," Teddy said, almost looking sorry.

Ruffling his blue hair, Hermione sighed heavily. She would always have a soft spot for Teddy; despite his rebellious nature, which he had clearly inherited from his mother. In a way, it was like he was one of her own children. She could remember countless nights she had spent with him when he was a baby. Teddy screaming in her arms as Harry paced the room, practically pulling his hair out from the stress of being a new father. She and Ron had helped Harry raise Teddy almost equally during those first few years after the war.

"Just eat, you three, before I confiscate your brooms," Hermione groaned.

:::::

Bent over her desk in the library, Hermione viciously scratched out yet another error she had found in her rough draft of the chapter she had wrote. It was time, she decided, to get back to work. And since she didn't have the time for the bookshop just yet, she decided that she would start on her next book.

Before, she had mainly focused on writing children's book. However, she thought that for her next project she might work on an autobiography, of sorts.

When she had written for children, she has done so with the intent of shaping young minds against prejudices and injustices. Writing books about Hagrid and Norbert, she thought would teach kids not to judge people on their outward appearance or to show them that magical creatures were not meant to be abused by wizards.

However, since being with Draco she realized that children, perhaps, did not need these lessons as much as they once had. It was the adult wizards and witches that were the problem. They were the ones who couldn't let the past go.

So, she was writing about her life and her new life with Draco. Sure there were plenty of biographies about the Golden Trio, but most were as factual accurate as Rita Skeeter's work. Furthermore, she would be lying if she hoped it wouldn't ruffle some feathers. After what happened with Lucius she knew that she had to do something that would prevent any harm from coming to her children simply because of their last name. And she knew that she was an establish enough author after having edited the current edition of _Hogwarts: A History_, to make sure this book would be read by thousands of wizards. After the disaster that was S.P.E.W., Hermione knew that she needed to change the activist tactics and she knew a book would be just the way to do it.

She had yet to tell Draco, however. And she knew that he would not take it well. He would tell her to leave it alone, but that was something that she couldn't do. To say that she dreaded the conversation would be a massive understatement.

Just as Hermione bend back over to write, Draco came into the library.

"Well, the Potter boys are back at home and Scorpius and Lyra are taking their naps," Draco sighed. "I really wish I could take a nap. I'm knackered."

Looking up at him, Hermione noticed that there were dark circles under his eyes and he did indeed look very tried. "You should take a nap. You haven't had much time to sleep in the last few days."

"I'm fine," Draco said, sitting down on the chaise lounge. "What are you working on?"

"My next book," Hermione answered, trying to sound very casual.

"That's brilliant," Draco said excitedly. "What is it about?"

Hermione felt her face drain of colour. She didn't want to tell him right yet. She had wanted to have some chapters done, so she could have given it to him to read first – to show him that it wouldn't be such a terrible idea.

"I – uh," Hermione sputtered and for the briefest moment she thought about lying to him. "Please don't be angry. I – I am writing an autobiography."

"About your life as a Muggle-born?" Draco asked uncomfortably. "Why would that make me angry?"

"It's sort of about that," Hermione continued cautiously. "And my life now – with you."


	15. Chapters

Draco looked up at Hermione for what seemed like a lifetime. He wasn't sure what she was trying to pull, but he couldn't quite formulate the words he needed to ask her.

"About your life with me?" Draco asked hesitantly. "Um – are you talking about how I treated you in Hogwarts? I thought we were past that."

Hermione looked at him with pleading, wide eyes. "Of course we are," Hermione breathed. "It's not that – well it's partly that. I want to explore and expose the injustices and prejudices of the Wizarding world by looking at what _I've_ had to face. But also what you have to face on an everyday basis too."

After taking a deep, calming breathe, Draco said firmly, "I understand what you're trying to do through this, Hermione, but I think that it's a terrible idea."

It _was_ a terrible idea. He didn't want people knowing all his personal details and he certainly didn't want their sympathy. He understood why people hated him and his father – and it was well deserved as far as he was concerned. They had done awful things under the rule of the Dark Lord and he wasn't about to pretend like he hadn't. Furthermore, he wanted nothing more than to forget that part of his life, bury it deep down. He didn't want it to resurface and for everyone to remember what he had done. He had spent nearly a decade trying to be someone else to make people overlook his past.

Then there was the issue of the children. Under no circumstances would he allow for their names to be dragged through this.

"I think it's what _I_ need to do to protect our children. If people see what it was really like for you and what it _is_ like for you now, I know that things will change," Hermione continued softly. "If I can show them what you are really like – what your family is really like then maybe I won't have to worry about you every time you step foot outside this house!"

"Nothing is going to happen to me!" Draco countered raising his voice slightly.

Hermione reached for her wand and quickly casted a Muffliato charm. "Are you serious? Something is going to happen to you! Something already _has_. I've witnessed you getting attacked _twice_ and that's only just the ones I've seen. I know you don't tell me when it happens, but I think you're forgetting that I am smarter than you. I will not just wait for the day that Harry or Ron or any other Auror comes to my door to tell me that you have died!"

"You're not writing your next book about me or our children, Hermione," Draco shouted. He could feel his anger boiling up inside of him. "I don't think our family is something that you can just publicizes and exploit to sell books. How is this any fucking different from all the rubbish that is published in The Daily Prophet!"

Draco watched as Hermione face turned from genuine hurt to pure rage. "How dare you, Malfoy!" she seethed. "How dare you! That's not what it's going to be like and you know it!"

He did know it. He had taken a low blow, knowing that it would anger her. What little resolve he had, however, was quickly diminishing. And he knew he was losing the argument.

"So what then? Are you going to write about how you meet me again after seven years and how I was attacked outside your shop and how I knocked you up and ruined your life?" Draco growled. "Is that it, Hermione?"

There was a moment before Hermione spoke that was quite and loud all at the same time. Draco's words rung out and seemed to hover between them. His chest was heaving from his heavy breathing, but Hermione looked almost serene.

She calmly walked up to him and Draco watched her like she was a coiled snake, waiting to strike at any moment. And she did.

His head whipped around from the force of her slap and he stumbled back against the chaise. In shock, he turned to see that she has tears pooling in her eyes and that she was cradling her right hand.

"Knocked me up and ruined my life?" She squeaked. "You think that's why I stayed with you, you git?" Shaking her head slowly, Hermione sighed. " I am going to give you moment - we both need to calm down. I am going to take the children and I am going to stay the night at my parents. I strongly suggest that you read the chapters I have written."

Draco's anger seemed to evaporate and he shakily got up from the chair. "Hermione-" He pleaded. "Please, just stay."

"No," she shook her head firmly. "No, I don't think so."

Draco clenched his jaw and fits as he watched he walk out of the study. He hadn't meant most of the things he said - not really. Everything had just gone way to far and he had gotten caught up in the argument. He hadn't changed his mind, though. He still thought to idea of Hermione writing about their personal life was deplorable at best. But he should have heard her out before attacking her like he had.

He heard the distinctive crack of someone Disapperating and he knew that Hermione and his children were gone. His chest twisted in agony and dread.

::::

It was well past four in the morning and Draco put down the last sheet of paper from Hermione's chapters.

He had avoided that offending papers as long as he could. But by three o'clock he hadn't managed any sleep, despite being exhausted. His bed was too cold and empty without Hermione. His whole evening, actually, had been spent in a trance of uncomfortable silence without her and the children.

So, he had walked into the library and stared at the papers for a good quarter of an hour, before decided to read them.

Rubbing his palms aggressively over his face, Draco groaned loudly. It wasn't anything he had expected. She had managed, in what little work she had done, so capture his life without relieving personal details. She never mention Scorpius or Lyra specifically, keeping them, for them most part, private.

The most personal details she had given was of Lyra's birth. The words looked up at his mockingly - blatantly pointing out his guilt and stupidity from their argument.

_When my daughter was born, it was one of the happiest days of my life. He held my hand and cooed in my ear the whole time. Draco had done nothing, but support me though the whole process, like any doting father or husband would. I can guarantee, however, that none of those fathers were threatened to be kicked out for merely speaking._

_While he soothed me, healers threatened to kick him out of the delivery room nearly every time opened his mouth. He took the abuse and did not argue. But my memory of my daugter's birth will alway be tainted by that blatant discrimination. _

_ Now tell me, how can anyone capable of such love be so terrible? Life is no longer black and white_._ People, who once fought for the light, treating people like the Malfoys - those reformed Death Eaters - like they still are part of Voldemort's crusade. We must remember that many of Voldemort's followers did not do do of their own free will. I am under no illusion of what he has done in the past is justifiable. But it is in the past. And he has atoned for his mistakes multiple times over. Should a man continue to be punished for the mistakes he did as a boy? I think not._

_Then again, I have witnessed this change firsthand. And until my very last day, I will remember that moment when I handed my daughter to her father and she started up at him with her big, Malfoy-inherent, blue eyes. And I saw the pure, unfiltered love incompasitate his entire being..._

The page was left unfinished, no doubt because of his interruption. He felt awful, he could remember a time when he had felt so worthless.

Sighing heavily, Draco got up from the desk. He needed to see her, but it was far too late to go to the Grangers and he didn't want to wake the entire house.

He made his way to the livingroom, and with any hope his owl would be there sleeping and not out hunting. And as luck would have it, the Eagle Owl was indeed there.

Jotting down a few quick lines, Draco tied the note to the owl's leg and opened the window.

He watched the owl fly way into the dark night sky before reluctantly returning to bed; even though he knew that he would not be able to sleep.


End file.
